Canada is all-in for the 2027 Youth and Women’s America’s Cup events in Naples, with the Vancouver Yacht Club-backed team aiming for the podium and building a national pathway for Olympic, SailGP, and America's Cup sailors along the way. Justin Chisholm quizzed team CEO Mark McLean for more details.
After a 37-year hiatus from the America's Cup scene, Canada made a proud return at the 2024 Youth and Women’s events in Barcelona under the Concord Pacific Racing banner. Now, with the next edition in Naples on the horizon, team CEO Mark MacLean says the AC40 Canada Racing Association is “full steam ahead” for a bigger, better campaign in 2027.
For MacLean, a lifelong America's Cup fan and former backer of Canada's 1984 and 1987 challenges, this is a deeply personal project. “It’s ridiculous that it took 37 years for Canada to come back,” he said. “This initiative is about inspiring young sailors, empowering women, and ensuring that gap never happens again.”
I check-in with Tudor Team Alinghi’s director for technical and sailing, New Zealand America’s Cup veteran Dave Endean – the man in charge of making sure that in AC38 the Swiss syndicate improves on its somewhat lacklustre performance in the last Cup in Barcelona.
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