‘Massive shame’: SailGP stars react to cancelled event in Christchurch
Saturday, 23 March 2024
SailGP boss Russell Coutts said “minority interests’’ made it too difficult to stage more events in Christchurch.
Dolphins force all three races to be canned on day one on Lyttelton Harbour.
Sailors gutted for 11,000 fans, who left disappointed.
Canada's Kiwi skipper Phil Robertson summed it up best: 'A massive shame, to be honest.''
New Zealand counterpart Peter Burling came a close second: 'Gutting.''
Yet, their reactions were diplomatic, and mild, compared to many of the 11,000 spectators who fumed as they departed the SailGP event on Lyttelton Harbour without seeing the F50 catamarans compete in the 10-strong fields in any of the scheduled three races in the Christchurch event on Saturday.
Everything crunched to a halt when Hector's dolphins were sighted near the start line. That was that.
Eventually, after waiting for well over an hour for the mammals to shift out of the race zone, organisers cancelled racing.
The Peter Burling-driven New Zealand boat, which now sails under the moniker Black Foils, cruised past the stands at slow speed to give fans something to see, but everyone knew it was a poor substitute.
The punters had come to see fast action on the waves, not this. And, to make it worse, they would probably never get the chance to see SailGP in Lyttelton again after CEO Russell Coutts said before the event it's unlikely to return.
'A massive shame, to be honest,'' Robertson said. 'A shame for the fans as well, we could have put on a pretty awesome show out there today. Quite sad we couldn't actually show them our craft, and what we can actually do. So it's pretty disappointing.
'I'm just really disappointed for them, to be honest.''
Robertson gave the impression he would have liked to be more forthright. But he did make it clear that foiling boats sail all around the world in different marine environments: 'It's never been a problem anywhere else in the world. Yeah, there's dolphins everywhere and dolphins in many oceans, and we have never had an issue in the past.
'It is a shame that it gets shut down here.''
Robertson has fond memories of racing at this venue. Last year he guided Canada to a memorable victory in the final. He ticked off the reasons why he likes the joint: picturesque harbour, perfect sailing arena, decent breezes, fans close to the action and a festival atmosphere.
'Unfortunately you have got, yeah, a few inconveniences that are sort of stopping the show,'' Robertson added.
Burling said it was more frustrating for the fans than his team. It was, he noted, not up to him to question why this happened. He will, no doubt, be leaving it to the likes of Coutts to make his thoughts clear on this matter.
The reality, however, is that after Coutts' comments earlier in the week, and what unfolded on Saturday, this sailing extravaganza is toast.
'Yeah, it is gutting in a way,'' Burling said. 'But it looked like everyone was having a pretty amazing time on shore. Hopefully we can get a great day underway tomorrow, and this will all be behind us.''
Asked if it was the right decision to can all racing, he said: 'It's not my call. We have got a great mammal protection plan in place, and yeah, that's all part of it.''
Burling also noted that when a whale was sighted on the course in San Francisco a few years ago, they had to re-sail that final.
A spokesperson for SailGP said it was likely organisers would decide on Sunday morning whether to have more races, or stick with the three on the itinerary.
Robertson hoped the paying fans get more value for their loyalty: 'I know the show we put on today would have been outrageous and would have blown everyone's minds. And here we are, sitting around.''