After a year of training and testing various crew configurations, Alinghi Red Bull Racing has selected four experienced sailors with multiple top sailing trophies between them including Arnaud Psarofaghis, Yves Detrey, Bryan Mettraux, along with young talent Maxime Bachelin, to be the starting crew this week in Vilanova i la Geltrú, Spain.
The selection was made by the Sailing Team Advisors together with the whole sailing team. The team also include helmsman Nicolas Charbonnier and two trimmers Nicolas Rolaz and Lucien Cujean, who were named as reserve crew.
Let’s meet the starting crew for this first pre-regatta:
Arnaud Psarofaghis (helmsman, 35)
A member of the Alinghi team since 2016, Psarofaghis is a former Swiss Sailor of the Year award-winner and European champion in the foiling Moth class in 2008 and 2009, the same year he won bronze at the Moth World Championships. Originally from Corsier, Switzerland, on the banks of Lake Geneva, Psarofaghis is the skipper of the team and vocal leader who has been consistently pushing the team around him to perform at the highest levels. Whether with them or against them, Psarofaghis like to say that he has been out on the water competing with several members of the Alinghi Red Bull Racing team over the past several years.
Maxime Bachelin (helmsman, 25)
Inspired to sail by an older brother involved in the sport, Bachelin began his sailing career in an Optimist at age 8 and hasn’t looked back since. With multiple top results in 420 and 49er class at European and World Championships over the past few years, the Lausanne-native is one of the youngest members of the Alinghi Red Bull Racing team and a big talent who simply loves to sail fast. Maxime has been one of the three helmsmen since the start of the Alinghi Red Bull Racing project, alongside Arnaud Psarofaghis and Nicolas Charbonnier.
Yves Detrey (trimmer, 44)
One of the most experienced sailors on the Alinghi Red Bull Racing team, this will be Detrey’s fifth America’s Cup campaign having been part of the winning Alinghi teams in 2003 and 2007. Trained as a boat builder, Detrey has played a crucial role for the team during testing and boat development acting as a link between the sail racers on-board and the technical team including designers and shore crew. As a youth he was active in myriad sports – including snowboarding, football and water polo – and was drawn into sailing by his father who kept a 9m10 Joker-class for the family.
Bryan Mettraux (trimmer, 33)
A member of the Alinghi Red Bull Racing campaign as a key member from the start, Mettraux is a versatile and physical sail racer who had previously spent several years with the Alinghi team. Mettraux is trained as a shipbuilder and has spent numerous years as an apprentice with a boat builder. He has been sailing BoatZero since the beginning and, working as trimmers alongside Yves Detrey, has been a key link towards improving the team’s performance through boat development. Out on the water, Mettraux cut his stripes early on with dinghies (420, 49er) and keelboats (Surprise, Farr 30) and finished 4th in the Youth America’s Cup in 2013.
