The Star: March 16, 2023

Thursday March 16 2023 The Star 67
SAILGP’S WOMENS PATHWAY
SailGP introduced a Women’s Pathway at the start of
Season 2 as part of its better sport strategy to promote
inclusion, inspire change and provide opportunities
across all levels of the sport. The programme aims to
fast-track training and development, so women can gain
the valuable experience needed to race the high-flying
F50s.
New Zealand SailGP Team female athlete Liv Mackay
started sailing as a fun way to spend time with her brother
and father while growing up in Napier, New Zealand. Now,
strategist for the New Zealand SailGP Team, and the
inaugural skipper of the Live Ocean Racing team, Liv is
trailblazing the way for women in professional sailing.
Mackay said: “Once my competitive side took over and
I learnt to grasp every opportunity that came my way,
it all kicked off. I started representing New Zealand and
from there my career flourished. As a global sailing
league that races at iconic locations around the world,
the opportunities I have with SailGP are incredible, from
touring the world to working with the best athletes in the
industry, it’s a surreal experience and I love soaking in all
the knowledge and improving my skill set”.
Every team now includes a Women’s Pathway athlete
on the F50 for racing.
INSPIRING THE NEXT GENERATION
Launched in the league’s inaugural season in 2019,
Inspire is SailGP’s community, education and outreach
initiative, powered by our belief that sailing can be a
force for good, Powered by Nature, Driven by Purpose.
SailGP Inspire aims to serve a leading role in helping to
diversify the sport of sailing for youth without race, gender,
and socioeconomic status presenting a barrier to entry.
SailGP Inspire works with each of its host venues and
partners to offer programs that create impact within the
local community and most importantly leave a legacy,
and has engaged more than 10,000 young people to date
across the programme’s three pillars: learning, racing and
careers.
The action-packed SailGP Inspire programme will reach
into the local community, schools and boating clubs
to engage more than 200 people in the lead up to and
during the ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix. More than
30 interns will be matched with SailGP teams and in other
roles across the organisation for a week-long immersion
in various fields - from boatbuilding and hydraulics to
broadcast media and hospitality.
Through the Inspire Learning program, nearly 200 yeareight
students from various Christchurch schools will be
provided with a hands-on learning experience in a series
of science, technology, engineering and mathematics
(STEM)-based learning activities and challenges, centred
around the sport of sailing.
Canterbury Yacht Clubs will also be in on the action, with
nine local clubs paired with a respective national team in
a weeklong partnership that will include a technical tour
of the SailGP event village and a visit with their adopted
team. And finally, youth sailors and wing foilers will get to
go behind the scenes, meet the world’s best athletes, with
some (WASZP sailors) taking part in a racing programme
on the F50 racecourse, directly in front of sold-out crowds
at Naval Point.
LEAVING A
LEGACY
In every city it visits, SailGP teams up with a local
community purpose project as part of the league’s Host
City Climate Action Charter. Projects focus on areas
including clean energy impact, and wider environmental
issues, including wetland and ocean restoration.
In Christchurch, the chosen project is the Ōmaru Stream
Restoration Project. Led by Te Hapū o Ngāti Wheke
Rāpaki, the project aims to restore the forests surrounding
Whakaraupō by restoring vegetation, reducing pests, and
enabling biodiversity to flourish and reduce sediment
running into the harbour.
TICKET HOLDERS JUMP
ON A BUS FROM HOME
ALL EVENT TICKET HOLDERS HAVE FREE ACCESS TO METRO BUSES AND FERRIES ACROSS
CHRISTCHURCH TO GET TO AND FROM THE CENTRAL CITY LIVE SITE LOCATION, WHERE THE
EVENT SHUTTLES LEAVE FROM. JUST SHOW YOUR TICKET TO THE BUS DRIVER.