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SailGP Cancels 2024 Auckland Event Over Spectator Stand Legal Dispute

25th November 2023
The SailGP fleet in action on Race Day 1 of the ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix in Christchurch, New Zealand on Saturday 18 March 2023
The SailGP fleet in action on Race Day 1 of the ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix in Christchurch, New Zealand on Saturday 18 March 2023 Credit: Bob Martin/SailGP

SailGP has cancelled its upcoming event scheduled for Auckland next March over a reported legal issue concerning land for a spectator stand.

According to Marine Industry News, a dispute has arisen over how much land would be made available for the seating area at Wynyard Point, a zone of reclaimed land on Waitematā Harbour where remediation works are ongoing and which is currently leased to America’s Cup winners Emirates Team New Zealand.

The city of Auckland said that it presented alternatives to SaulGP organisers but “the unavailability of Wynyard Point land as a spectator facility proved to be a barrier to holding the event in Auckland”.

A spokesperson for SailGP said that it “continues to work…to progress planning for its Season 4 New Zealand event, 23-24 March 2024”.

Marine Industry News has more on the story HERE.

Published in SailGP
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About SailGP

SailGP unites world-class athletic talent and cutting-edge technology. Eight teams representing Australia, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Japan, New Zealand, Spain and the United States will contest eight events held in as many countries over an 11-month period. Following the season opener in Bermuda, the championship visits renowned sailing locations in Italy, the United Kingdom, Denmark, France, Spain and New Zealand. San Francisco, United States, has the honour of closing proceedings with the Grand Final on 26–27 March 2022. Among those vying for the crown is the Great Britain team led by Rolex Testimonee and four-time Rolex World Sailor of the Year, Sir Ben Ainslie, who says: “The sailing world was crying out for the creation of such a concept. SailGP is a major milestone in the evolution of yachting, but it also represents continuity. The combination of state-of-the-art technology and sporting prowess is widening the appeal of sailing.