Jemima Lines breaks 90-year gap as first British woman on America's Cup crew

British sailor Jemima Lines has been named to the GB1 squad for next year's America's Cup, marking the first time in 90 years that a British woman will compete in the event. The 2027 race, set for Naples, Italy, now mandates at least one female crew member on each five-person boat. Lines, 29, previously served as a kitefoiler for the British Sailing Team and was Team GB's reserve for Olympic gold-medallist Ellie Aldridge at the Paris 2024 Games.

With a degree in mechanical engineering, she will also contribute to the crew's AC75 design efforts. The last British woman to race in the Cup was Phyllis Sopwith in the 1930s. Lines attributes her drive to her late father, Ralph Crathorne, a former special-forces soldier who died on Ben Nevis. She will sail alongside Bleddyn Mon, Dylan Fletcher, Ben Cornish and Andrea Tesei, and looks forward to the challenge of turning design concepts into on-water performance.