Advertisement

Ben Ainslie and Britain reign supreme in 1st SailGP race

  • The British SailGP team spray champagne on their skipper Ben Ainslie as they celebrate winning the first leg of the series in Sydney, Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020. Britain beat Australia in the final match race. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
    1/8

    Australia SailGP

    The British SailGP team spray champagne on their skipper Ben Ainslie as they celebrate winning the first leg of the series in Sydney, Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020. Britain beat Australia in the final match race. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
  • Spectators watch the action from a boat as Britain's boat, center, helmed by Ben Ainslie leads the fleet in the first race of the Sydney SailGP event on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. (Thomas Lovelock/SailGP via AP)
    2/8

    Australia SailGP

    Spectators watch the action from a boat as Britain's boat, center, helmed by Ben Ainslie leads the fleet in the first race of the Sydney SailGP event on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. (Thomas Lovelock/SailGP via AP)
  • The British SailGP team, lead by skipper Ben Ainslie, center, celebrate winning the first leg of the series in Sydney, Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020. Britain beat Australia in the final match race. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
    3/8

    Australia SailGP

    The British SailGP team, lead by skipper Ben Ainslie, center, celebrate winning the first leg of the series in Sydney, Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020. Britain beat Australia in the final match race. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
  • Keep up to speed at a glance with the Top 10 daily stories

    Yahoo News is better in the app

    Keep up to speed at a glance with the Top 10 daily stories

  • Spain's boat, top, helmed by Phil Robertson and Britain's boat, helmed by Ben Ainslie cross during a race of the Sydney SailGP, on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. (David Gray/SailGP via AP)
    4/8

    Australia SailGP

    Spain's boat, top, helmed by Phil Robertson and Britain's boat, helmed by Ben Ainslie cross during a race of the Sydney SailGP, on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. (David Gray/SailGP via AP)
  • Britain's SailGP team helmed by Ben Ainslie sails during a race of the Sydney SailGP, on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. (David Gray/SailGP via AP)
    5/8

    Australia SailGP

    Britain's SailGP team helmed by Ben Ainslie sails during a race of the Sydney SailGP, on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. (David Gray/SailGP via AP)
  • United States SailGP Team, right, helmed by Rome Kirby leads the field during a race of the Sydney SailGP, on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. (David Gray/SailGP via AP)
    6/8

    Australia SailGP

    United States SailGP Team, right, helmed by Rome Kirby leads the field during a race of the Sydney SailGP, on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. (David Gray/SailGP via AP)
  • Keep up to speed at a glance with the Top 10 daily stories

    Yahoo News is better in the app

    Keep up to speed at a glance with the Top 10 daily stories

  • Britain's SailGP team helmed by Ben Ainslie leads the fleet during their race of the Sydney SailGP, on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. (David Gray/SailGP via AP)
    7/8

    Australia SailGP

    Britain's SailGP team helmed by Ben Ainslie leads the fleet during their race of the Sydney SailGP, on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. (David Gray/SailGP via AP)
  • A helicopter flies near the Denmark boat as the prepare for the SailGP race on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. Britain leads the standings after the opening day while Australia and Japan were tied for second with 23 points each. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
    8/8

    Australia SailGP

    A helicopter flies near the Denmark boat as the prepare for the SailGP race on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. Britain leads the standings after the opening day while Australia and Japan were tied for second with 23 points each. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
The British SailGP team spray champagne on their skipper Ben Ainslie as they celebrate winning the first leg of the series in Sydney, Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020. Britain beat Australia in the final match race. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
Spectators watch the action from a boat as Britain's boat, center, helmed by Ben Ainslie leads the fleet in the first race of the Sydney SailGP event on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. (Thomas Lovelock/SailGP via AP)
The British SailGP team, lead by skipper Ben Ainslie, center, celebrate winning the first leg of the series in Sydney, Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020. Britain beat Australia in the final match race. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
Spain's boat, top, helmed by Phil Robertson and Britain's boat, helmed by Ben Ainslie cross during a race of the Sydney SailGP, on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. (David Gray/SailGP via AP)
Britain's SailGP team helmed by Ben Ainslie sails during a race of the Sydney SailGP, on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. (David Gray/SailGP via AP)
United States SailGP Team, right, helmed by Rome Kirby leads the field during a race of the Sydney SailGP, on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. (David Gray/SailGP via AP)
Britain's SailGP team helmed by Ben Ainslie leads the fleet during their race of the Sydney SailGP, on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. (David Gray/SailGP via AP)
A helicopter flies near the Denmark boat as the prepare for the SailGP race on Sydney Harbour, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020. Britain leads the standings after the opening day while Australia and Japan were tied for second with 23 points each. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
Associated Press
Updated ·2-min read

SYDNEY (AP) — Ben Ainslie's Britain team completed a near-perfect first round of the SailGP series on Sydney Harbour with a convincing win over defending champions Australia in the match-race final on Saturday.

The British boat, skippered by four-time Olympic gold medalist Ainslie, won the first four of the five fleet races, with Tom Slingsby's Australia taking the fifth. That win, which followed a second place in Saturday's opening fleet race, clinched a spot in the final for the Australian boat.

The Australians had a pre-start penalty before the final and Britain charged away to register a convincing win.

Slingsby and his crew started the day level on points with Japan, skippered by Australian Nathan Outteridge, who notched two third-place finishes on Saturday.

"Tommy and the Aussies are the home-town favorites, it was great to be up against them in the match race and to come out on top is a brilliant start for us," Ainslie said. "I've got to give all credit to the team, it's a team sport.

"I don't think I've ever stepped on to a boat like this where I've just been able to put it where I want to put it on the race course and the guys will take care of the rest."

After the first event of the second season, Britain sits atop the leaderboard with 47 points, followed by Australia with 42, Japan 39, Spain 31, the United States also with 31 and Denmark with 22. France rounds out the standings with 14 points.

The next round of the 2020 SailGP will be held in San Francisco on May 2-3, followed by stops in New York, Cowes, England and Copenhagen.

___

More AP sports: https://apnews.com/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports