Beaches sailor Jason Waterhouse is at the flight controls of the Australian SailGP catamaran, set to hit Sydney Harbour this month
It’s like Formula One, but on the water. That’s how Bilgola Plateau sailor Jason Waterhouse describes the adrenaline-filled SailGP. It’s a race where F50 catamarans, lifted high into water on hydrofoils, do ‘hot laps’ – sprinting around a circuit at speeds of 90 to 100km/hr.
Jason, an Olympic medal-winning sailor, has been part of the Bonds Flying Roos Australian team for six seasons, having made the switch to the SailGP which sees teams from across the globe compete. “An Olympic campaign is so long-term. You’re training and it’s also a passion project – it’s all about representing your country and personal excellence. And for an event that happens once every four years, it’s a bit like a university degree,” Jason, 34, says.
“Whereas SailGP is more like a grand prix, like Formula One. You fly in, so a day of practice and then two days of high- intensity racing, stadium racing, and then you fly out again and live your normal life at home.”
In SailGP, teams are awarded points on winning their heats. At the end of the weekend, the top three highest-scoring teams compete in the final – and win prize money. It’s a high stakes competition, with a total prize pool of USD $12.8 million up for grabs over the season.
There are 13 events throughout this year, in places like New York, Rio and Spain – with Sydney Harbour set to host the third event from 28 February to 1 March.
Born and raised in Newport, Jason has long been home on the water. He took three separate year-long sailing adventures with his family, travelling across the Pacific Ocean from America to Australia at four years old, the Mediterranean around age 10, and then the Atlantic through the Caribbean and across the Pacific at 12. It was an experience Jason says, which made for a close-knit family. “You’re a team… you’re all working together to get this boat that’s like a little cork in a bottle around the world safely. It was really cool.”
His passion for sailing ignited, Jason joined junior sailing clubs in Pittwater and Manly and followed the pathway all the way through to the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, where he and his teammate, cousin Lisa Darmanin, won a silver medal sailing a Narcra 17 (catamaran). They also competed at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
Alongside his Olympic career, Jason has sailed in the America’s Cup and was recently onboard the URM yacht at the Sydney to Hobart race in December. He was introduced to SailGP by fellow Olympian, Tom Slingsby, who is the skipper of the Bonds Flying Roos. “It’s not a surprise that a lot of the top GP sailors have come from successful Olympic backgrounds,” Jason says.
While the Bonds Flying Roos are a team of around 20 people, six members are onboard during the race, including Jason who is the flight controller. “I’m responsible for controlling the underwater hydrofoils,” he explains. “When we build up enough speed we lift up… into the air and fly above the water. Essentially, I’m balancing the boat on those foils as we go along.”
Cheering Jason on in Sydney will be his wife, daughter and family. “Everyone loves it,” he says. “My daughter, she’s two, she loves it. My nephew, he’s eight years old and he loves it, and my grandfather who’s 89 loves it. It’s a sport for everybody.”
You can catch the action of the SailGP on SBS.