The United States SailGP Team announced that Lindsey Vonn, a three-time Olympic medalist, eight-time world championship medalist, alpine skier, philanthropist, and entrepreneur, was appointed to the United States SailGP Team as a member of its Board of Directors.
The U.S. SailGP Team is one of ten national teams in SailGP, the emerging global league now in its fourth season, that races in high-tech, high-speed 50-foot foiling catamarans at worldwide.
“I’m thrilled to join the Board of Directors for the United States SailGP Team,” said Vonn. “As a Red Bull partner for nearly two decades, I’ve had the pleasure of sailing with Red Bull, and that experience engaged my interest in sailing and encouraged my decision to get involved. As a member of the Athlete Team of Advisors for the Avenue Sports Fund, this partnership feels full circle. The energy and vision of the team align with the drive I have felt in my career, so I am extremely grateful and excited to take part.”
Vonn first sailed on an earlier generation foiling catamaran in 2017 and reportedly “fell in love with the adrenaline and challenge of the high-tech, highly physical boats that hit 60 mph speeds.” Since retiring from ski racing in 2019, she continued her work on the Lindsey Vonn Foundation, founded in 2015, and acquired equity stakes in women’s soccer and volleyball teams, and established a long-term investment portfolio spanning multiple industries.
“Lindsey is one of the greatest athletes of all time, an American icon, and has tremendous business acumen,” said Mike Buckley, U.S. SailGP Team CEO. “I am really looking forward to collaborating on how we tap into the passionate racing fanbase and introduce our team and league to new audiences.”
Last November, the U.S. SailGP Team was purchased by a group of sports, technology and entertainers, led by founding Uber engineer Ryan McKillen, Margaret McKillen, and two-time world champion sailor Mike Buckley. The Avenue Sports Fund, led by Avenue Capital Group CEO Marc Lasry, is the lead investor in the “largest team acquisition in SailGP history.”
Currently, more than halfway through a 13-event Season 4, SailGP will close out the season in North America this spring and summer, highlighted by the Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix, June 22-23 and the Sail GP Season 4 Grand Final in San Francisco, July 13-14.
Sail GP was founded in 2018 by Oracle’s Larry Ellison and sailing great Sir Russell Coutts. It has grown from six teams and five events in its inaugural season, to ten teams and a 13-event lineup in Season 4. SailGP is one of the only professional leagues with national teams representing the United States, Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Great Britain, New Zealand, Spain, and Switzerland, racing at iconic venues from Saint-Tropez, Sydney to New York and San Francisco.
Images courtesy Sail GP
