There will indeed be a French Challenge in 2024 among the “challengers” of the New Zealanders, title holders of the America’s Cup, the famous crewed sailing race. The Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, the winning yacht club in 2021, organizer of the next edition, announced on Tuesday January 3 that the K-Challenge, led by Stéphane Kandler, Bruno Dubois and the Société Nautique de Saint-Tropez, “has been accepted”.
The French Challenge joins four other official challengers: Ineos Britannia (UK), American Magic (USA), Alinghi Red Bull Racing (Switzerland) and Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli (Italy). All will be opposed, in October 2024, to Barcelona (Spain), to try to win the right to face Emirates Team New Zealand in the final.
Absent, for lack of means, in 2021
The latter is led by skipper Grant Dalton, who reacted on social networks to the selection of the tricolor crew: “It’s great that the French are back in the America’s Cup as 5e Challenger, and that they bring their uniqueness and know-how (…). France is a great sailing nation, despite this, it is not an easy task to put together a team to participate in the America’s Cup. »
?? A French challenge on the 37th America’s Cup. 2023, a year under the sign of Sport and Technology for KC… https://t.co/wc6UJLk0FO
Stéphane Kandler, founder and CEO of K-Challenge, said on his side ” very happy “ to officially be part of the challengers of the 37e edition of the America’s Cup. “We have been working behind the scenes for almost a year now”, he adds. Aligned during the America’s Cup in 2017, the French Challenge had not participated in the 2021 edition, due to lack of financial means. He will now have to launch a first boat likely to compete with his adversaries, who have all already entered the training phase on futuristic machines with impressive speed potential. Stéphane Kandler intends to specify the outlines of the French project by the end of January.