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A fresh wave of New Zealand sailing talent - with a pinch of old salts - will kick off their international season at the Princess Sofia Regatta in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, overnight - marking the beginning of a new Olympic cycle towards Los Angeles 2028.
A 20-strong Kiwi contingent will compete across six classes, before shifting to the French Olympic Week in Hyères in a fortnight. While some sailors will return to international waters for the first time since the Paris 2024 Olympics, others want to establish themselves on the world stage.
Notably absent from Palma are 49er silver medallists Isaac McHardie and Will McKenzie, as well as Nacra 17 bronze medallists Micah Wilkinson and Erica Dawson. Despite their absence, New Zealand remains well-represented in the men’s skiff fleet, with national champions Campbell Stanton and Will Shapland joining Seb Menzies and George Lee Rush, fresh from their Oceanbridge Sail Auckland victory.
Junior world silver medallists Francesco Kayrouz and Hamish McLaren will also be in action, along with newcomers Sam Bacon and Blake McGlashan.
Olympic wind foilers Veerle ten Have and Josh Armit will both compete in Palma - ten Have alongside rising stars Stella Bilger and Aimee Bright in a fleet that also includes Olympic medallists Marta Maggetti and Emma Wilson.
Olympian Veerle ten Have leads a Kiwi contingent of three in the women's windfoil in Spain. Photo / Jacob Fewtrell Media
In the men’s windfoil, Armit will face stiff competition from fellow Kiwi Eli Liefting, who has pipped him in two domestic events this year. Armit, who finished fourth in Marseille, will also go head-to-head with the three sailors who beat him to the podium: Israel’s Tom Reuveny, Australia’s Grae Morris, and Dutchman Luuc van Opzeeland.
Lukas Walton-Keim leads New Zealand’s charge in the kitefoil, with youngsters Lochy Naismith and Lucy Bilger also in the fleet, while Greta Pilkington is the country’s sole ILCA 6 representative.
A key storyline in Palma will be George Gautrey’s return to international competition after narrowly missing out on Paris 2024 selection to Tom Saunders. The Wellingtonian took an extended break from sailing in the class but recently resumed competition, training with British star Michael Beckett before making his comeback at Oceanbridge Sail Auckland.
Beckett will be among the favourites in Palma, alongside Olympic medallists Pavlos Kontides (Cyprus) and Stefano Peschiera (Peru).
Gautrey made headlines two years ago in Palma with a stunning medal race performance that secured silver and launched a breakthrough season, culminating in a world championship bronze in The Hague. He will look to rediscover that form against a stacked ILCA 7 fleet.
Saunders will make his season debut in Hyères, where he will be joined by Toby Wigglesworth in the men’s kitefoil.
Kiwis in Palma
49er: Sam Bacon (development squad) and Blake McGlashan (Aon Fast Track), Francesco Kayrouz (Aon Fast Track) and Hamish McLaren (Aon Fast Track), Seb Menzies (Aon Fast Track) and George Lee Rush (Aon Fast Track), Campbell Stanton (Aon Fast Track) and Will Shapland (Aon Fast Track).
Men's kitefoil: Lukas Walton-Keim (Olympic development squad), Lochy Naismith.
Women's kitefoil: Lucy Bilger.
ILCA 6: Greta Pilkington (development squad).
ILCA 7: George Gautrey (NZL Sailing Team), Caleb Armit (Aon Fast Track).
Men's windfoil: Josh Armit (NZL Sailing Team), Eli Liefting (Aon Fast Track), Blake Hinsley.
Women's windfoil: Veerle ten Have (NZL Sailing Team), Stella Bilger (development squad), Aimee Bright (development squad).
