NEIL HUNTER
Grinder
Hometown: Isle of Arran, Scotland
Key Achievements:
1 x Youth America’s Cup Winner
2 x 49er National Champion
3 x America’s Cup Campaigns
Neil Hunter grew up on the Isle of Arran on Scotland’s west coast, so was never too far from the sea. His racing career began early on in Optimists, and by age 16 he was quickly progressing into the International 420 youth class and Scottish RYA’s 420 Squad and then onto the 29er class sailing with his younger brother, Rory. At the age of 18, Neil and Rory got a 49er and they trained on their own every weekend for 18 months in Scotland between studying for a degree in Naval Architecture at Strathclyde University. The training paid off and they achieved multiple results in the 49er including 2x National Championships. The Hunter brothers were then invited to join the British Sailing Team Podium Potential Squad and they moved to Weymouth to train full-time. In early 2016, Neil was invited to sail with the BAR Academy team at the first Extreme Sailing Series (ESS) event in Oman. At the time, the British Challenger for the 35th America’s Cup, Ben Ainslie Racing (BAR), launched an Academy programme. Neil immediately applied and was accepted into the squad. Four months later, Ben Ainslie invited Neil to race with the senior squad onboard for the Cup. That was a hugely exciting moment for Neil, and also led to him joining Ainslie’s Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team. Neil has since taken part in two further America's Cup campaigns with Ainslie's British Challenge, most recently in Barcelona for the 37th America's Cup where the crew became the most successful British team in an America's Cup for 90 years. The 29-year-old has been with the British SailGP Team since Season 1 and is one of the powerhouses on-board the F50, taking on the Grinder role and providing the power to trim the wing and make the boat race faster.
IMPACT
Neil often visits local sustainability projects whilst travelling with the Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team. Here is one visit to the Omara Stream Wetland Project in Christchurch: