Women's America's Cup marks a new frontier for women’s sailing, with Olympic athletes headlining the historic competition
Discover how history is being made in the 2024 Women's America's Cup with Olympians playing a central role in the ongoing action.
Sailing
History was made on Saturday, 5 October when the women's Emirates Team New Zealand and Athena Pathway Women zipped across the start line to initiate the first race of the Women’s America’s Cup 2024.
It was a remarkable sight, signifying the growth of women’s sailing and the success of a multi-year effort to bring all-female crews to the storied America’s Cup.
Far from an overnight development, the historic moment was built on decades, if not centuries, worth of effort from female sailors to compete at the highest level of the sport.
From Susan Henn supporting her husband’s America’s Cup effort in 1886 to Team USA’s Allison Jolly and Lynne Jewell winning the first boat class reserved for female sailors at the Olympic Games in 1988, women have left an indelible mark on the sport of sailing.
We explored the history of women’s sailing at the Olympic Games and America’s Cup while highlighting the female athletes propelling the sport to an exciting new frontier as part of the Women’s America’s Cup 2024.
Female sailors compete alongside male sailors at the Olympic Games and America's Cup
At the turn of the 20th century sailing was effectively an “open” gender sport, meaning both male and female athletes were able to enter top competitions around the world.
Ireland’s Susan Henn was the first recorded female sailor to compete in the America’s Cup, sailing alongside her husband Lieutenant William Henn aboard the “Galatea” – a vessel that challenged for the America’s Cup in 1886. While the Henns left the competition empty-handed, Susan blazed a trail for future female sailors to contest the America’s Cup.
Great Britain’s Enid Wyndham-Quinn would be the next female sailor to challenge for the America’s Cup, sailing aboard her father’s vessel during the 1893 America’s Cup. She was promptly followed by US sailor Edith Hope Goddard Iselin, who made history as the first woman to sail aboard the winning vessel of the America’s Cup in 1895.
It wouldn’t take long for female sailors to find success at the Olympic Games either, with Switzerland's Hélène de Pourtalès leading the way as a crew member aboard the 1-2 tonne yacht nicknamed “Lérina” at the Olympic Games Paris 1900.
De Pourtalès sailed alongside her nephew Bernard de Pourtalès and husband Hermann de Pourtalès, who acted as skipper. The trio left the City of Lights with one gold and one silver medal, finishing on the podium in both of their races.
Inspired by the women who came before them, female sailors would continue to compete in both the America’s Cup and Olympic Games throughout the 20th century. In fact, more than a dozen female sailors contested events at the Olympic Games between Paris 1900 and Seoul 1988 – the first edition of the Olympic Games to feature an event open solely to female sailors.
All-female crews make waves at the Olympic Games and America’s Cup
Seoul 1988 were a major turning point for women’s sailing. All-female crews were given a dedicated event on the official events programme for the first time at an Olympic Games, with crews from 21 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) competing for medals in the women’s 470 (two-person dinghy) event.
Allison Jolly and Lynne Jewell of the United States emerged as the favourites for the gold medal, but nearly lost their historic title due to a mid-race equipment malfunction during the final race of the regatta. Nonetheless, repairs made on the water were enough to secure the top spot in the overall standings and claim the first-ever Olympic gold medal offered exclusively to female sailors.
Opportunities for female sailors increased once more at the Olympic Games Barcelona 1992, with three events – 470 (two-person dinghy), Europe (one-person dinghy) and Lechner A-390 (windsurfer) – set aside for female sailors.
The growth of women’s sailing at the Olympic Games was soon echoed at the America's Cup with the first all-female crew to challenge for the right to compete in 1995.
Led by Dawn Riley, the crew of the “Mighty Mary” contested the 1995 Citizen Cup in the hopes of representing the San Diego Yacht Club during the 1995 America’s Cup. While they were unsuccessful in their quest, the all-female crew left a lasting impression on the storied competition.
Women’s sailing would continue to feature in stand-alone women’s events at the Olympic Games, but the participation of female sailors in the America’s Cup dwindled with the introduction of foiling catamarans around 2010.
Women’s America’s Cup: A new challenge for the world’s best sailors
Female sailors have long contested the America’s Cup, but there was never a stand-alone regatta organised for all-female crews in the competition’s 173-year history. Enter the Women’s America’s Cup 2024.
The stand-alone competition was designed to highlight female sailors and close the experience gap between genders. Crews representing yacht clubs from 12 nations, including six that do not have any counterparts challenging for the 37th America’s Cup, arrived in Barcelona, Spain to contest the historic regatta, which runs from 17 September to 13 October.
The 12 crews are split into two groups of six, with the six teams with counterparts challenging for the 37th America’s Cup placed in Group A, and the six teams without counterparts challenging for the 37th America’s Cup placed in Group B.
Both groups will contest a series of eight races, with the Top 3-ranked teams from each group advancing to the semi-final series. Crews that advance to the semi-finals will then contest a series of four races, with the top teams advancing to a winner-take-all match race to decide the champion of the first-ever Women’s America’s Cup.
The regatta will feature AC40 yachts – a type of foiling monohull similar to the AC75 yachts raced by teams challenging for the 37th America’s Cup.
“Young guys already see male sailors shining, and young girls will now be seeing women sailors as well shining, and the media highlighting them," Coraline Jonet, project manager for Alinghi Red Bull Racing women’s team, told ABC News. "It's going to be inspiration and show them that their dream can be true.”
Jonet also explained the need for a stand-alone women's event, adding: "We saw that in the new boats half of the crew don't need physical strength, which means women and men can do the same job. Obviously, you need experience. And with this first women's America's Cup, doing all the jobs, getting that experience, will hopefully mean being able to join the America's Cup [in the future]."
Olympic champions making waves in Barcelona
Plenty of Olympians have joined the 12 crews contesting the Women’s America’s Cup in the hopes of building up their resumes and advancing further in the sport.
Perhaps no name stands out as much as Great’s Britain's two-time Olympic champion Hannah Mills, who serves as skipper of the Athena Pathway Women entry.
Mills has already proven herself a fierce competitor over the first few days of racing, successfully guiding her craft to a maiden victory in the first race of the Women’s America’s Cup 2024, crossing the finish line more than a minute ahead of the nearest opposition.
Speaking ahead of the regatta, Mills touched on the importance of the competition, stating: “This is such an opportunity for women to get experience in these boats. That experience gap is real, and we’ve all raced Olympic boats but in this foiling era of sailing there is very little opportunity and experience with women sailors and this, really for me, marks a huge step forward."
The quality of racing has been exceptional as well, with the finishing order changing from race to race in Group A. In fact, Mills has found herself on the back foot after her early victory in Barcelona due to the sensational sailing displayed by the Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli women’s team led by skipper Giulia Conti.
Conti has put her vast racing knowledge, which includes multiple world championship podiums and four Olympic appearances, to use with great effect in Barcelona, securing three race wins in Group A.
Her crew is set to meet Mills' crew in the make-or-break match race final on Sunday, 13 October, after the pair of skippers fended off a valiant challenge from Spain’s Sail Team BCN in the semifinal series on Friday, 11 October.