Charting the journeys of the sailors in the Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup is a fascinating project and whilst many of the helms and trimmers came through the elite Olympic sailing programmes of their countries to strike gold, silver or bronze medals, for others it has encompassed endurance events, combat sports or even the military.
For Théry Schir, a cyclor for Alinghi Red Bull Racing, and an incredibly popular member of the team, his journey into competitive sailing was mapped out from an early age but took a detour along the way. With a father who was a keen and successful racer, a young Théry was enrolled at a sailing school at Morges on the banks of Lake Geneva at the age of 12 and his path looked set to the five rings of the Olympics.
However, what Théry discovered was a love of cycling and competing, so two years later he switched with a refreshing honesty as he explained: “To be very honest, I have never had much success on a boat. I was not bad but at 14 I remember finding an excuse to quit sailing. My father was a little sad, but I wanted to ride a bike,” he explained. “Fifteen years later I tell myself that it was a good decision. I was able to make a career out of cycling and now I'm back at the top level of sailing. So, I feel like a 14-year-old again!”
Théry’s career in cycling took off as he dedicated himself completely to this most demanding of disciplines. A second place in the UCI Track Cycling World Cup in 2014 and a silver in the omnium at the European Games in 2015 were early markers of success before a switch the road, where he was equally successful, finishing third in the 2021 National Road Championships. Théry also competed at both the Rio and Tokyo Olympic Games in 2016 and 2020.
However, the lure of the America’s Cup and the fame of the Alinghi Red Bull Racing team in Switzerland – easily one of the most popular sporting team in the country – drew Théry back as he explains: “I wanted to compete in one of the most historic competitions in the world. And at Alinghi Red Bull Racing we have a team filled with extremely talented people. Alongside the Olympics, the America’s Cup is a dream for any top athlete. Moreover, taking part with a 100% Swiss team makes me very proud. We are a small freshwater country, but it seems that our team has an unfinished story with the Cup.”
Making that transition back, albeit in a cyclor role onboard a powerful AC75 where the demands are equally as dynamic is something that Théry has taken in his stride, saying: “It actually didn’t differ that much in terms of physical performance. I would say you try to be an endurance athlete but still with a strong capacity to deliver a high power output. Regarding the endurance level, that didn’t change because I was training more in endurance then than now, but the biggest difference for me was to gain weight & power. For a normal cyclist it’s usually not very good, but for a cyclor it’s a good quality to be heavy. The main difference is that on a road bike you have to carry your own weight. On the boat, it’s all about pure power. Nothing relative to your body weight.”
When Théry was competing on the road in long races, hydration and heat management were key. It’s the same demand for the cyclors at the Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup and is something that all the power teams are addressing. Alinghi Red Bull Racing is the same as Théry explains: “The heat management will be a key component of the performance on the boat. You can lose up to 2-3 litres on a very long sailing day. For a 30-minute race you really need to control your hydration from the morning to the evening to make sure you’re not running out of energy. So, ice jackets, ice socks and cold baths after sailing! Being in Barcelona for the last two years has enabled us to train this, get used to the heat and find the right solution and routine for each of us.”
Alinghi Red Bull Racing were the first to start training in Barcelona aboard their much modified ‘BoatZero’ which eventually featured the cyclor pods being positioned inboard. Now with their beautiful (and radical looking) ‘BoatOne’ the cyclors are housed outboard and it’s very clear that the Power Group have been working hard on tactical delivery of power as Théry explains: “Of course there’s a tactic behind the power delivery! It’s like managing the tank of your car. You can go fast for two laps but if you over perform too early you can be empty too early. There’s a science behind delivering the right amount of power. But in general, as soon as the sail is moving, you need to provide energy. It’s a very high intensity sport and I guess these boats, if they could have more power, they would take it. There’s never enough power.”
Théry and his Power Group colleagues also concentrate on the bigger picture whilst training and racing, and even get the odd chance to see the extraordinary as he explains, saying: “Obviously, the main role of a cyclor is to focus on the power delivery. But depending on your profile, you can be an added value to your teammates and feed them with information about our opponents or the racecourse. I guess that’s the difference between a good and a great cyclor. At the end, to be able to understand what is happening is helping a lot to perform better in our role. It’s great to be able to have a look at your opponent, especially if you’re faster. Best of all, however, was when we saw dolphins swimming alongside our boat!”
The Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup is a long-haul programme for all of the athletes and the demands on the Power Group are extreme. Over the past two years, the Alinghi Red Bull Racing athletes have been under an intense regime, but the results are there to see and it’s something that Théry has clearly enjoyed, saying: “It’s extremely demanding. But because we’re well trained, we understand the demand, we’re able to provide the energy required for one or two races a day. I’m still able to cycle back home after a sailing day! It’s very similar to track cycling. You need to perform the best at the race but still keep going to continue performing day after day.”
With racing starting on the 22nd August for the third, and final, Preliminary Regatta ahead of the start of the Louis Vuitton Cup on the 29th August where every point counts, the demand on the cyclor teams is going to be huge. It’s a role they’ve prepared for and one thing’s for sure – the Alinghi Red Bull Racing Power Group are more than up for the task in their quest to win the America’s Cup for the third time.
Text: Magnus Wheatley
Image: Samo Vidic / Alinghi Red Bull Racing