"A dream gig” is how Giles Scott describes his new position as driver of the British SailGP team, Emirates GBR, adding “It’s a super exciting prospect”. The 36-year-old double Olympic medallist and seasoned America’s Cup tactician was handed the reins by the team’s CEO and skipper, Ben Ainslie, shortly before the seventh grand prix event in the Season 4 SailGP calendar took place in Abu Dhabi.
At that juncture, the team was lying sixth in the overall standings, the ambition being a top three in the League overall by the end of the season to secure a place in the Grand Final in San Francisco in July.
Ainslie’s decision to step back may have come as a surprise to some; however, Scott reveals they’d been having discussions behind the scenes for some time – although, he says, “when it came to fruition it did come about pretty quickly!”
For Ainslie’s part, the rationale behind the move is clear. He plans to remain closely involved with SailGP, both commercially as CEO and team majority owner, and operationally;
