Peter Burling returns from baby duties to skipper New Zealand’s SailGP team in Christchurch

Friday, 22 March 2024

The fastest race on water comes to our shores again. Here's all you need to know about SailGP in Lyttelton.

Peter Burling returns from paternity leave to skipper New Zealand’s SailGP team in Christchurch.
Lyttelton Harbour is staging New Zealand’s second SailGP regatta after Auckland pulled out of hosting.
New Zealand sit second in the standings and need to finish in the top three at the end of the season to compete in the deciding match race in San Francisco in July.

SailGP: Event nine; Where: Lyttelton Harbour, Christchurch; When: Saturday and Sunday at 3pm; Live coverage: Three and ThreeNow.

Peter Burling is back from baby duties to drive New Zealand’s SailGP team around the Lyttelton Harbour.

Christchurch is this weekend’s venue for New Zealand’s leg of the SailGP season when the Kiwi crew, with their new Black Foils nickname, races with Burling at the helm again after he missed last month’s Sydney regatta.

Peter Burling is back to drive New Zealand’s SailGP team in Christchurch.

The New Zealand team’s co-chief executive was absent because he and his wife Lucinda welcomed their first child into the world.

“It’s been an awesome time. Lucy and the little one have been going amazing. It’s been a cool part of life, but now we’re here in Lyttelton ready to race,” Burling said at Friday’s top table with the other nine skippers by Lyttelton Harbour. Some were wearing an additional jersey indoors on a chilly Canterbury autumn morning. Burling was not.

He was replaced by Nathan Outteridge, his Team New Zealand and America’s Cup team-mate, in Sydney when Australia beat Denmark and the Kiwis in the match race to extend their lead in the elite sailing series.

There was a hint of tension at Friday’s press conference with all 10 drivers. New Zealand’s crew haven’t been permitted a training day around the harbour this week when others have, although this is not uncommon in SailGP and Burling shrugged it off.

Peter Burling and a member of the Ngāti Wheke iwi exchange a hongi during a pōwhiri this week.

“It feels like this season the New Zealand team haven’t had many days sailing compared to a lot of the other teams,” Burling said.

Less experienced teams are often given more time to prepare on the water as the series attempts to balance its competitiveness. New Zealand are among the stronger boats in SailGP’s fourth season.

Outteridge will switch back to Switzerland as their driver in Christchurch. After skipping Sydney, Burling said he was targeting a hat-trick of wins after New Zealand’s victories in the previous two regattas in the Middle East lifted them into the all-important top three.

Burling returns in the same F50 foiling catamaran but with the team’s new name, the Black Foils, the latest identity adopted by a sports outfit representing New Zealand.

Lyttelton Harbour hosts New Zealand’s leg of the SailGP for the second time.

“To come up with such an amazing name that’s aligned with some famous sporting entities in New Zealand, and be something Kiwis can connect with, is awesome,” he said.

“The support from the name has been incredible so far and, hopefully, some other teams can join us in coming up with some cool identities.”

There are three more regattas after Christchurch, in Bermuda, Halifax and New York, before the San Francisco finale in July when the three leading boats in the standings will be racing to win the whole championship.

New Zealand sit second behind Australia but are closely followed by Denmark, Spain, France, Great Britain and the United States.

Canada, driven by Kiwi sailor Phil Robertson, won last year in Christchurch when New Zealand hosted SailGP for the first time since the series began in 2019. The Kiwi event remains in Lyttelton Harbour after Auckland pulled out of hosting this season’s regatta.

Tom Slingsby skippers Australia, the three-time SailGP winners, who remain the boat to beat after securing their first victory of the season in Sydney. As the celebrations began, they were already thinking of Christchurch.

“As an Aussie sportsman, it doesn’t matter what sport it is, you want to come to New Zealand to try to beat the Kiwis on their home turf. It’s one of those bucket list items,” Slingsby said on Friday.

“It’s very hard to do. We’ve seen that in rugby and all sorts. Winning in New Zealand over a top Kiwi team is very hard to do. It’s exciting and a good challenge, but it’s a mountain to climb.”

SailGP leaderboard after eight events (points): Australia 68, New Zealand 58, Denmark 52, Spain 48, France 45, Great Britain 45, United States 45, Canada 38, Germany 21, Switzerland 17.