ARC Team USA reveals its founding crew – here's who made the cut

After months of speculation, we finally know who will be doing the sailing for American Racing Challenger Team USA. On Monday afternoon, the American challenger for the 38th America's Cup announced its founding squad, naming the first six athletes who'll chase the oldest trophy in international sport when the Cup rolls into Naples in 2027.

The six are Lucas Calabrese, Riley Gibbs, Hans Henken, Harry Melges IV, Michael Menninger and Louisa Nordstrom – a spread of Olympic medallists, Cup veterans and rising talent, and, tellingly, a group pulled almost entirely from American Magic's last campaign and the current US SailGP team. If you've followed either, very few of the names will catch you out.

More surprising is that nobody has actually been given a job yet. “We're building a squad rather than defining fixed roles from day one,” says sailing director Giles Scott, the double Olympic champ and SailGP Canada driver who took the post in April. “The America's Cup demands adaptable athletes who can evolve alongside the program, and we believe this group gives us an incredibly strong foundation to build the team from.”

ARC has the long game in mind. Assembled at the eleventh hour to prevent the United States from sitting out an America's Cup for the first time in the event's 175 years, the team is nonetheless talking about something that reaches well beyond the Naples Cup.

“This group represents exactly what we're trying to build,” says CEO Ken Read. “They bring world-class experience, proven performance at the highest levels of our sport and the potential to help shape the future of American sailing. As we continue to build our challenge, we're committed to creating opportunities for the next generation of talent and establishing a program that can compete at the highest level for years to come.”

So that’s the mission. Here’s what we know about the six who’ll be sailing…

Lucas Calabrese

Calabrese is the most decorated sailor of the six. Originally from Argentina, now a US citizen, he won 470 bronze for Argentina at London 2012 and holds world titles in four separate classes – the Optimist, TP52 (twice), the Melges 20 and the J/70 – and he was a key part of American Magic's last America's Cup campaign. That campaign was a good measure of his adaptability: he stepped in for the injured Paul Goodison during the Cup itself, and had earlier slotted in as a trimmer during testing. No roles have been confirmed, but with that helming experience behind him, our best guess is he’ll be on the wheel.

“It is an honor to be part of ARC Team USA. I see this as a fantastic opportunity and a challenge that I'm excited to take on. We have the ambition to build a very strong sailing team, and I'm looking forward to contributing my experience to help get us there and to racing alongside such a talented group of people.”

Riley Gibbs

Gibbs represented the USA in the Nacra 17 at Tokyo 2020 and has sailed for the United States SailGP team. At world championship level he's recorded top-five finishes across three different classes, and he was part of American Magic's Cup campaign in Barcelona, working there as a trimmer. That's the seat we'd expect him to fill again.

“Being a part of this new challenge with ARC Team USA is super exciting. It's an incredible opportunity not only for myself but for the whole team. We have a great group of people, we're all super motivated to make the very most of this opportunity that Karel and Chris are providing for us. Our focus now is on establishing our pathway as a serious challenger not only for next year but for the next few cycles to come.”

Hans Henken

Henken is a Paris 2024 Olympic bronze medallist in the 49er and was named the 2024 US Rolex Yachtsman of the Year. Off the water he's an aerospace engineer, with bachelor's and master's degrees from Stanford, and he currently works as flight controller for the United States SailGP team. This will be his first America's Cup campaign. Given the mix of foiling experience and engineering behind him, the likeliest fit is as a trimmer or in a strategy role.

“I am proud to be joining ARC Team USA and taking on the 38th America's Cup. This opportunity brings together everything I am passionate about, combining high-performance sailing with engineering, innovation and the chance to contribute as part of a world-class organization. From studying at Stanford to competing in the Olympics, each chapter of my career has challenged me to grow, learn and become better than I was the day before. Working alongside this team, pushing the boundaries of what is possible, and racing at the highest level of our sport is exactly where I want to be.”

Harry Melges IV

Melges carries one of the most famous names in the sport, with the results stacking up alongside it. He won the 2025 TP52 Super Series aged 24, helming American Magic's Quantum Racing, took the 2021 US Rolex Yachtsman of the Year award, and has eight national championships across various classes. He also skippered the NYYC American Magic youth crew to a runner-up finish at the Youth America's Cup in Barcelona and is a reserve sailor on the US SailGP team. That skippering pedigree makes a helm's seat the obvious call.

“It's incredibly exciting to be taking the next step in my America's Cup journey with ARC Team USA. Having had the opportunity to represent the United States in the Youth America's Cup, it's a real privilege to now be part of the senior team and continue chasing a dream I've had for as long as I can remember. We have an incredibly talented group of people, and I'm looking forward to working together to build the best team and put the fastest boat on the racecourse.”

Michael Menninger

Menninger arrives with a deep match-racing record: a former Red Bull Youth America's Cup helmsman and a world champion in match racing, team racing and the Etchells class. He was starboard trimmer for the US America's Cup campaign in Barcelona and is currently wing trimmer for the United States SailGP team, which now sits fourth in the season standings. Trimmer, then, is where we'd expect to find him.

“Representing the United States in the America's Cup is something I'm incredibly proud of. I can't wait to get to work with this team and see what we can achieve together over the next few years.”

Louisa Nordstrom

Born in Sweden and raised in Sarasota, Florida, Nordstrom was a four-time All-American at Yale who campaigned in the 470 for Paris 2024, before racing in the inaugural Women's America's Cup in Barcelona, where she trimmed for American Magic. She's since progressed through the US SailGP development programme and joined ARC Team USA in June. Her name has been on the US SailGP roster since the Halifax event, though she's yet to race an event. Trimmer or strategist looks the most likely fit.

“I'm really honored to be joining ARC Team USA and excited for the challenge ahead. It's incredibly special to be part of this team from the very beginning, and I look forward to building something long-term alongside such a dedicated group. Racing in the America's Cup wasn't even something I could have imagined when I was younger, so having the opportunity to be part of this campaign for AC38 is a huge honor. I can't wait to dig in.”

A quick recap on how this team exists at all. When American Magic withdrew in October, the United States faced the very real prospect of missing an America's Cup for the first time since the whole thing began back in 1851. ARC Team USA – representing Sail Newport – was pulled together in a hurry to prevent exactly that, and confirmed as an official challenger in April under the extended entry deadlines of the newly-formed America's Cup Partnership. It's backed by Czech billionaire Karel Komárek and British entrepreneur Chris Welch, with Read as CEO and Scott as sailing director.

Crucially, they didn't start from scratch. ARC bought American Magic's entire operation – the AC75 Patriot, a pair of AC40 development boats, the simulators, the masts and the intellectual property that goes with them – and set up shop at the old American Magic base in Pensacola, where the engineers are now reworking Patriot to the 2027 rules, among them the switch from pedal-powered cyclors to battery power. The team, meanwhile, were spotted on their first two-boat AC40 training session on 12 June.

In about six weeks, ARC Team USA lines up at the preliminary regatta in Naples (24-27 September) where we’ll see how they fare against the opposition. More announcements are promised, though the team is keeping quiet on whether that means more sailors or shore crew. But the founding six are on the board, and this is a group well worth watching as it knits itself together.