215 days before the start of the 38th Louis Vuitton America’s Cup France’s La Roche-Posay Racing Team launched and sailed the first AC75 in the Bay of Naples. Having arrived in Barcelona with their boat at the very last minute for the 37th edition of the Cup, the French team will this time set off before all the other teams. Sports director Philippe Presti said: “Thousands of hours of work have gone into this boat. We want to make the most of the time available so that we can make a difference in the end.”
A familiar boat with a new look for France’s cup contenders
After the French Cup team had been training all summer in their home waters off Lorient, they moved to Naples ahead of schedule. The AC75 was transported by road as “Convoi Eceptionnel” to the French port city of Sète, and from there was transported by ship to Naples. Like all AC75 yachts in this America’s Cup cycle, “La Roche-Posay” is also a revised version of the boat that was used in the previous America’s Cup.
In the Bagnoli harbour area of Naples, the pride of Bleu, Blanc, Rouge was launched at the start of the week. Immediately afterwards, it set out onto the course against the imposing backdrop of Vesuvius. On this milestone day for the La Roche-Posay Racing Team led by Stephan Kandler and Bruno Dubois, guests included America’s Cup representatives, figures from the worlds of politics, business and sport, media representatives from across Europe and many friends of the team.
Skipper Quentin Delapierre and co-helmsman Diego Botin – who compete against each other in SailGP and will be racing together for France in the America’s Cup for the elusive Silver Jug – were in high spirits along with their crew. They were also riding the wave of momentum from the second Cup pre-regatta, in which the French despite capsizing twice one an impressive third place had achieved, and had been described by other teams as having “rocket speed”.
"Suddenly, it all feels much more real. As skipper, I’m really proud to be representing this French challenge.” Quentin Delapierre
The trimmers Jason Saunders, Leigh McMillan, Florian Trittel and Maëlenn Lemaitre were there, as were the other crew members Amélie Grassi, Enzo Balanger and Timothé Lapauw. Amélie Grassi did not come “alone”, as Philippe Presti noted with a smile: The French Ocean Race Europe winner She is expecting her first child in about a month, but intends to get back into preparations for the challenger round of the 38th America’s Cup as soon as possible afterwards.
Naples and its Bagnoli district are benefiting from the America’s Cup
Among the guest speakers in Naples was the Italian Under-Secretary of State, Luigi Sbarra, who described the America’s Cup as “an event of extraordinary international significance”. Sbarra also pointed out that the Cup’s debut in Bagnoli held particular significance.
Sbarra commented: “It is part of a development, a wonderful project and an institutional synergy that has been underway for several years and aims to set in motion a process of genuine renewal and development for the area. This process was initiated and supported by the Meloni government, which in July 2024 allocated over 1.2 billion euros from the Development and Cohesion Fund for the renewal of infrastructure and the regeneration of this area – a project that has been awaited for decades.”
Naples’ mayor, Gaetano Manfredi, was also present on the day the French set off under a brilliant blue sky and the warm Italian September sun. He said: “Over the coming days, more teams will be setting up their bases in the city. It’s a massive undertaking, but also a tremendous achievement. Bagnoli is finally coming to life.”
New ambitions in the America’s Cup: the French with renewed confidence
The La Roche-Posay Racing Team put on a highly spirited display that day, and their hunger for the Cup was evident every minute of the day. Speaking in Naples, Co-CEO Bruno Dubois explained the team’s ambitions: “We’re not saying we’ll win the America’s Cup. But we are contenders and will do everything we can to achieve that. The course has been set, but anything can happen. In SailGP, we started the season with a podium finish and were then in the lead in Auckland when the crash with New Zealand "It happened, and the season was over."
Stephan Kandler, the Franco-German founder and managing director of K-Challenge and the La Roche-Posay Racing Team, said in Naples: “With this new campaign, we are taking an important step forward in France’s history at the world’s oldest sporting event. For the first time, we have been able to build on a previous campaign and draw on our expertise, resources and experience to create an even stronger project. Seeing our AC75 here in Naples today is a significant moment, but above all it marks the start of a new phase in our ambitions.”
"We want to firmly establish France amongst the world’s leading teams and build a platform that can one day win the America’s Cup." Stephan Kandler
Even if nobody says it out loud: there is a real sense of excitement and optimism within the La Roche-Posay Racing Team. The team is taking an aggressive approach, continuing to draw on design elements from Team New Zealand, for example in the new foils. “We’ve been able to take shortcuts down this path in the past. Otherwise, we wouldn’t be where we are today,” says Stephan Kandler.
On course for success in the America’s Cup with a new crew mix
The crew mix, comprising core members of the last French campaign alongside the Spanish 49er Olympic champions and 2024 SailGP winners, Diego Botin and Flo Trittel, seems to be giving the team a real boost. It also means that the responsibility is spread across more shoulders, whereas Quentin Delapierre had a great deal to shoulder in the last America’s Cup. It remains to be seen how far this French team can go in the 38th America’s Cup.
Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter