SailGP Season 5 Champions, Emirates GBR, has announced its new signing for the 2026 season, reuniting an Olympic gold medal-winning partnership for the first time in five years. Wing Trimmer Stuart Bithell will transfer to Emirates GBR from the Germany SailGP Team at the start of the 2026 campaign, replacing Iain “Goobs” Jensen, who will return home to join Australia’s BONDS Flying Roos SailGP Team.
Bithell and Emirates GBR Driver Dylan Fletcher famously won gold together at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in the 49er class, defeating the defending Olympic champions and six-time world title holders, New Zealand SailGP Team’s Pete Burling and Blair Tuke. The pair were a dominant force in the years leading up to Tokyo, medalling at every regatta in 2017 and capturing both the European and World Championship titles. Both were also Olympic teammates of Strategist Hannah Mills, who secured her second gold medal in Japan.
Bithell joins the team with a wealth of SailGP experience, having competed in four seasons. He was one of the original SailGP athletes in Season One, serving as Flight Controller with GBR before taking time out to pursue his Olympic ambitions. He returned in Season 3 as Wing Trimmer with Switzerland, then joined the Germany SailGP Team for the past two seasons. The German team has been the in-form squad over the second half of the season, winning their first event in Geneva and following that up with a podium finish in Cádiz.
Emirates GBR Wing Trimmer Stuart Bithell said: “I’m absolutely buzzing to join the team. It will be special to sail with Dylan and Hannah again, having raced with and alongside them as teammates in the Olympics.
“I’m replacing a great sailor in Goobs, and I know I’ve got big shoes to fill after the team won the Championship last season. But I live for the pressure, and I can’t wait to take on the challenge.”
Emirates GBR CEO & Co-Owner Sir Ben Ainslie said: “Firstly, we want to wish Iain Jensen all the best for his move back home to represent Australia. Wanting to represent his country again is something we all understand and fully support.
“Iain has been an incredible member of our team for many years, but we have secured a ready-made replacement in Stuart Bithell, especially as he knows Dylan so well from their years of competing and racing together.
“Stuart’s performances this season with the Germany SailGP Team have been seriously impressive, and it’s great to bring that experience and skill set into our team.”
Iain Jensen joined the British SailGP Team in Season 2 after racing with the Japan SailGP Team. The Olympic gold medallist from Wangi Wangi, Australia, will replace Chris Draper as Wing Trimmer for Tom Slingsby’s Australian team next season.
In 2026, the Rolex SailGP Championship will visit 13 global destinations, beginning at the Oracle Perth Sail Grand Prix on 17–18 January. The league will then travel to cities including Auckland, Sydney, Rio de Janeiro, Bermuda, New York, Halifax (CAN), Portsmouth (UK), Sassnitz (GER), and Dubai, before concluding with the winner-takes-all Grand Final in Abu Dhabi.
