A SAS (Safe, Accessible, Sustainable) boat to bring sailing back to the 2028 Paralympics in Los Angeles. A team of European excellence engaged in the development of the project
The SAS project, for the development of a foiling sailboat for sailors with disabilities, equipped with assisted flight control and produced with sustainable and recyclable materials, was one of the six winners of the call for proposals ‘Towards the Ocean Race – Call for innovation, sport in the blue economy’, promoted and financed by the City of Genoa as part of the Blue District initiative, winning a grant of €198,000.
Proposed for the first time in 2017 by Luca Rizzotti at the FOILING WEEK™ Forum, SAS Project will be led by Enrico Benco and Cristiana Talon of GS4C Sustainable Solutions will be supported by FOILING WEEK™ (strategic development and communication), of FaRo Advanced Systems (electronics), of Guillaume Verdier Architecture Navale (design and engineering) and of the shipyard Sangiorgio Marine (boat building).
The SAS prototype will be developed on the basis of an existing hull equipped with piercing foils and T-shaped rudders designed by Studio Verdier. Structural modifications will be made to this and the necessary equipment for safe and autonomous foiling will be installed. The boat’s stability will be controlled by on-board electronics developed by FaRo, which will minimise the need to help straighten the hull by shifting the crew’s weight.
SAS Project will offer a foiling experience not only to those with mobility issues, but also to inexperienced sailors, effectively broadening the potential user base.
The data acquired during the sea trials will make it possible to optimise the construction of the boats through the study of the structural characteristics of the fibres and sustainable resins, thanks to which it is planned to start mass production.
SAS Project wants to become the symbol of the integration of technology and sustainability without compromise, a boat where technology and the physicality of the crew do not represent barriers to entry, a rig that allows everyone to race on an equal footing. SAS was created with the explicit aim of creating a Paralympic circuit within the orbit of the We Are Foiling initiatives.
SAS will be part of the initiatives that will animate the Innovation Village in Genoa during The Ocean Race The Grand Finale in June 2023.
