NEW ZEALAND BLACK FOILS
New Zealand’s Black Foils will make their long-awaited return to the Rolex SailGP Championship at next month’s Canada Sail Grand Prix | Halifax, marking the team’s first racing appearance since February’s dramatic Auckland collision.
After months off the water, the Black Foils’ comeback was confirmed this week as their new F50 began its journey from SailGP Technologies in Southampton to Halifax, where the Kiwi team will rejoin the championship.
The Canada Sail Grand Prix will be the team’s first action together since the ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix | Auckland, where the Black Foils were involved in a major collision with DS Automobiles Team France.
In Halifax New Zealand will race on a newly built F50, produced by SailGP Technologies in Southampton, after the team’s original boat was badly damaged in the Auckland incident. Some salvageable components from the Black Foils’ F50 were also used earlier in the season to repair the French F50, in line with SailGP’s racing incident rules.
The return marks the end of a four-event spell on the sidelines for one of SailGP’s most decorated teams. The enforced absence has left the Black Foils at the bottom of the 13-team Rolex SailGP Championship standings, but with seven events still remaining on the 2026 calendar, including Halifax, they remain mathematically in contention for a place in the season-ending Grand Final.
Black Foils grinder Louis Sinclair, who suffered fractures to both legs in the Auckland incident, will not race in Halifax as he continues his recovery at home. As announced earlier in May, experienced SailGP athlete Stewart Dodson has joined the Black Foils as cover for Sinclair for the remainder of the season.
Black Foils co-CEO and driver Peter Burling said confirmation of the team’s return was a major milestone after a challenging period off the water.
“We couldn’t be more excited as a team to be back racing again,” Burling said. “It’s been fantastic to see the progress made on the new boat on a couple of visits to SailGP Technologies and we are thrilled that the wait to get back out there is nearly over.
“We’ve had amazing support over this period off the water and we are hugely grateful for that.”
Black Foils co-CEO and wing trimmer Blair Tuke said the team had remained united through a difficult chapter and was now fully focused on returning to competition.
“It’s not been an easy time but we are proud of how we have stuck together as a team during this period,” Tuke said.
“It’s really exciting to now be in the position to plan for racing again and I know we are all excited to be back out there doing what we love and representing the Black Foils.
“We felt good as a team to start the season and we are eager to get racing and put together the type of performances we know we are capable of.”
While the Black Foils have been absent from the start line, two members of the sailing team have kept racing on loan elsewhere in the fleet. Strategist Liv Mackay has competed onboard France in Rio and Bermuda, while grinder Marcus Hansen stepped in for ROCKWOOL Racing in Bermuda.
Mackay and Hansen will continue those loan roles at this weekend’s Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix before rejoining the Black Foils setup ahead of Halifax.
The Black Foils will travel to Canada for a boat commissioning period in the week leading into racing, as they prepare to bring the black boat back to the Rolex SailGP Championship start line