There’s a new team challenging the world sailing speed record, and it’s using a kite-powered sailboat to do it.
SP80 aims not only to surpass the current record of 68.3 knots, but it also plans to reach a staggering 80 knots, which is approximately 92 mph.
The SP80 team chose a kite-inspired sail to help them break the world sailing speed record.
The team has been testing its one-of-a-kind sailboat at ever-faster speeds off the coast of Leucate in southern France. It originally planned to break the record there in 2025, but deteriorating weather conditions forced it to change course.
The SP80 team was able to reach a top speed of 58 knots, making it the second fastest sailboat ever made.
In 2026, the team has been working on the boat and fundraising for its upcoming trip to Namibia, which offers some of the best speed-sailing conditions in the world: flat water and strong winds.
It’s in Namibia that Paul Larsen set the current sailing speed record, and where the SP80 team hopes to set a new one.
The SP80 boat looks more like a spaceship than a sailboat, with a trimaran design, a kite-inspired sail, two cockpits, two pilots, and two steering wheels (one for the kite and one for the rudder).
SP80’s trimaran design prioritizes stability while minimizing drag.
The boat is specially designed for the sailing equivalent of drag racing: going blisteringly fast in a straight line. The team has been undergoing specialized safety training at a facility used by helicopter pilots to practice escaping from tight spaces and an enclosed cockpit, even when submerged and upside down.
The team plans to head to Namibia this summer, where it will remain through the end of the year, hoping to ride that perfect gust of wind to a new world sailing speed record.
To see our hands-on look at the SP80 boat, and interviews with the co-pilots about what it’s like to sail (and escape upside-down), check out the video in this article.
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