Defeat
I have always been drawn to the highs and lows of sport.
I had the fortune of being right in the action due to my day-to-day role within the Performance Team. During the races I was busy with that job, I’d grab the camera and snap a few shots as and when I could.
A tumultuous journey of emotion as after 3 years of hard work the team started the competition horribly, losing six of six races during the Christmas Regatta in December 2020.
After Covid 19 disrupted all of the team’s training schedules we landed in New Zealand a little unsure of how we would perform against the other teams in the first and only pre-main event organised racing. We went in optimistic, we finished last.
Those days of constant defeat took their toll on the confidence of the team as a whole, felt as if it was the beginning of the end of the team’s campaign for the Auld Mug.
Coach Rob Wilson chats through the plans for the race with Tactician Giles Scott and Skipper Sir Ben Ainslie prior to the race start.
Flight controller Leigh McMillan and Performance Engineer Will Bakewell talk pre-race
Luke Parkinson and Bleddyn Mon displayed the frustration immediately as the race was lost again, this time with gremlins running amuck in the systems world.
Leigh Mcmillan post-race immediate debrief with coach Rob on the support boat as the race boat sail comes down behind them.
Sir Ben and Will immediately look through the data, after losing the first race of the day, searching for answers as the frustration begins to creep in.
A deflated Rob chasing solutions for the systems. The boat had been consistently inconsistent in everything but the race results.
The team watches with varying degrees of enthusiasm, as their competitors battle it out.
Eat some food, it will make you feel better.
.
A usually gleeful bunch, known for seeing some silver lining are as flat as the batteries they are swapping.
