La Roche-Posay Racing Team has become the first America's Cup syndicate to put its AC75 on the water in Naples, the city that will host the 38th America's Cup in 2027.
The French Challenger's foiling monohull returned to the water on Monday 19 October at 2pm, in front of partners, guests and media. Minutes later it was sailing in the Bay of Naples with Mount Vesuvius looming behind it.
A nice backdrop for the cameras, sure. But the real significance is that these are the exact waters where the Cup will be decided in 2027.
The boat had already done a stint of sailing in Lorient over the summer. It now returns to the water adapted to the regulations of the 38th America's Cup, with a strengthened crew and, for the first time, carrying the colours of title partner La Roche-Posay.
Being first to the venue matters in this competition. With the team already based in Naples, it can now ramp up its sailing programme and start testing technical developments in the actual conditions it will race in, rather than relying on guesswork from afar.
Skipper Quentin Delapierre called it a special moment for the whole team.
"Seeing our AC75 on the water here in Naples is a very special moment for the entire team. We are sailing on the very waters where the America's Cup will be decided in just a few months, and suddenly everything feels much more real. An enormous amount of work has gone into this launch, with so many people giving their all to get us here today. As skipper, I feel incredibly proud to represent the French challenge. Now, more than anything, we want to get out sailing, get this boat flying and make the most of this journey towards 2027."
Six months out, and the clock is already running.
Sporting director Philippe Presti, a two-time America's Cup winner, has overseen the arrival of two Olympic champions into the squad, Diego Botín and Florian Trittel, who join Delapierre and the rest of the sailing team. The programme going forward is built on three pillars: sailing, performance analysis and development, and simulation, backed by dedicated match racing training and ongoing work to find the strongest crew combinations.
"We have shown in the AC40 that we can compete with the best on equal terms, which is very encouraging," Presti said. "But the America's Cup is also a technological competition, where boat development plays a decisive role. The next six months will be crucial in unlocking the full potential of our AC75 and continuing our progress. We have strengthened our team and there is still significant room for improvement. Our ambition is to take a step forward from Barcelona and fight for a place in the final four, which would be a historic achievement for a French Challenger."
Maelenn Lemaître, strategist aboard the AC75, is tackling her first America's Cup campaign.
"What drives me most is the desire to get better every day and improve quickly. This is my very first America's Cup, and I'm discovering and learning so much every day. There are many challenges, both technological and sporting, but the biggest challenge is time. It really is a race against the clock. My personal goal is to absorb all this new knowledge as quickly as possible so I can bring my skills as a match racing tactician and engineer to the team and perform at my best in the America's Cup."
Helmsman Diego Botín pointed to the culture within the team as much as the hardware.
"The America's Cup has always appealed to us. When the opportunity came to join the French Challenger, we were immediately attracted by the people behind the project and the way it has been built. It is a close-knit team where everyone is fully committed and pulling in the same direction. That unity and collective energy are real strengths. We have a boat with tremendous potential, and we cannot wait to discover everything it is capable of."
There's a science angle to this campaign too, beyond the boat.
La Roche-Posay, best known for skincare, has launched a medical research programme involving the team's sailors. It began back in August at the brand's Chevilly laboratory and will track the dermatological condition of the athletes right through to Naples 2027, monitoring how their skin copes with the relentless exposure to UV, salt, wind and extreme temperature swings that come with Cup racing.
CEO Alexandra Reni-Catherine framed it as a two-way arrangement.
"Seeing the French AC75 carrying the La Roche-Posay colours in Naples marks the beginning of a journey we have been preparing for together with the entire team. The America's Cup is the ultimate test of endurance and performance, both for the men and women competing and for their skin, exposed to UV radiation, salt, wind and extreme temperature changes. That is precisely why we are here: to turn the America's Cup into a true open-air laboratory. Through the medical protocol launched with the sailors of La Roche-Posay Racing Team, we are monitoring their skin throughout the campaign, under extreme conditions. Our shared ambition for this 38th America's Cup is twofold: to support the team in achieving the highest possible performance, and to turn what we learn on the water into protection and skincare solutions that benefit everyone, far beyond the competition."
There's also a structural story here, separate from the boat itself.
Unlike previous French campaigns, K-Challenge has carried over its AC75, its infrastructure and a good part of its team from the Barcelona 2024 cycle. That kind of continuity is rare in this sport, and with development time counting for so much, it could prove decisive.
Off the water, there's been a shift too. Led by Stephan Kandler, K-Challenge is now one of seven founding members of the America's Cup Partnership, alongside Emirates Team New Zealand, Athena Racing, Luna Rossa, Tudor Team Alinghi, Arc Team USA Challenge and Team Australia. For the first time, the French team has a direct seat at the table shaping the competition's future, including discussions around a more stable and economically sustainable model and the possibility of a two-year cycle.
Kandler, who is CEO of both K-Challenge and La Roche-Posay Racing Team, sees it as a turning point.
"With this new campaign, we are reaching an important milestone in France's history in the world's oldest sporting competition. For the first time, we have been able to build on a previous campaign, retaining our expertise, our resources and our experience to create a stronger project. Seeing our AC75 here in Naples today is a significant moment, but above all it marks the beginning of a new phase in our ambition. We want to establish France permanently among the world's leading teams and build a platform capable of winning the America's Cup one day."
