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LAND ROVER BAR ACADEMY CHALLENGE FOR RED BULL YOUTH AMERICA’S CUP

12 June 2017

Land Rover BAR Academy team set to begin Red Bull Youth America’s Cup

  • British team face 11 of the most talented youth crews from across the world
  • Challenger aiming to win the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup at the first time of asking

Monday June 12th 2017, Bermuda: Land Rover BAR Academy is set to start their inaugural challenge for the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup (RBYAC) as the campaign to find the World’s most talented youth crew gets underway in Bermuda’s Great Sound on Monday 12th June.

The seven sailors aged between 19-24 have under gone 2 years of hard physical preparation and will step out onto the same course used for the America’s Cup racing to compete against 11 other world class crews.

Neil Hunter whom after just ten months with the Land Rover BAR Academy was promoted to and competed with the senior sailing team for the 35th America’s Cup has returned to the team alongside Annabel Vose who will be one of only two women competing in the competition.

The goal of the academy is to create a career pathway for British sailors into the America’s Cup, and build a British team to win the RBYAC. The Land Rover BAR Academy have already competed in the 2016 Extreme Sailing Series™, coming fifth in the professional stadium racing series, supported and mentored by the Land Rover BAR Senior Sailing team.

We’re looking forward to getting on the start line, it’s going to be really exciting racing. At the moment we are expecting the conditions to be a mixture of light and strong winds. We enjoy the breeze more than the light winds, but the conditions in Bermuda change so quickly, anything could happen. 

The Red Bull Youth America’s Cup differs to the Extreme Sailing Series in that the course will be bigger, the boats are bigger and faster and a bit harder to sail I think there will be more of a boat handling focus and that’s an area that we pride ourselves on. It’s also going to be important to get off the start line well, just like the ESS.

Rob Bunce
Land Rover BAR Academy Skipper

The Land Rover BAR Academy is creating a clear pathway for talented young sailors to fulfil their potential and we are proud to be a part of this journey. Seeing Neil sailing with the senior team over the last few weeks is proof the programme is working.

Mark Cameron
Land Rover Experiential Marketing Director

The Land Rover BAR Academy already compete in the Extreme Sailing Series™ where they recently placed 2nd in the Act 2 of the 2017 Extreme Sailing Series™ in Qingdao, China; a perfect spring-board for their challenge for the RBYAC.

Further information

For further information log onto bar.landrover.com or contact:

Lydia Haley

Senior Press Officer

+44 24 7656 4147 / +44 7730 923507

lhaley1@jaguarlandrover.com

Notes to Editors

Land Rover

Since 1948 Land Rover has been manufacturing authentic 4x4s that represent true 'breadth of capability' across the model range. Defender, Discovery, Discovery Sport, Range Rover Sport, Range Rover and Range Rover Evoque each define the world's SUV sectors, with 80 per cent of this model range exported to over 100 countries.

About Land Rover BAR

Sarah Alexander, Land Rover BAR Press Officer

Sarah.alexander@landroverbar.com t. +44 7766 391 276 / +44 1489 587 838

Ben Ainslie Racing (BAR) was launched on June 10th 2014 in the presence of Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cambridge. The team was conceived by four-times Olympic gold medalist and 34th America's Cup winner, Sir Ben Ainslie, with the long-term aim of challenging for Britain and bringing the America's Cup back home to where it all began in 1851. Sir Ben has developed and will lead a British entry capable of winning the prestigious trophy, something Britain has so far never managed to achieve.

Land Rover BAR is a commercial sporting team, with a number of individual private investors alongside corporate partners. The team is made up of some of the best British and international sailors, designers, builders and racing support.

Sports teams represent key role models in society. This privileged position is not taken for granted at Land Rover BAR. The team believe our influence should extend far beyond the race course, and have put sustainability at the heart of operations since launching the team with Exclusive Sustainability Partner 11th Hour Racing in 2014.

The team have built a new headquarters in the centre of Portsmouth, the 74,000 sq ft. building houses all the team's activities, and will welcome the public into its Tech Deck education centre.

The 1851 Trust is the team's official charity, and HRH The Duchess of Cambridge is its Royal Patron.

LandRoverBAR.com #BringTheCupHome

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