Jemima Lines has become the first British woman selected for an America's Cup sailing team in 90 years, joining the GB1 crew for next year's event. Her selection is significant not only historically but structurally: the 38th America's Cup, to be held in Naples in 2027, will be the first in its 175-year history to require at least one woman in each five-person crew, making Lines' place central to a wider shift in the sport's approach to gender representation.

The 29-year-old, a former kitefoiler who was Team GB's back-up to gold medallist Ellie Aldridge at Paris 2024, follows Phyllis Sopwith, the last British woman to race for a British America's Cup challenger, in 1934 and 1937. Lines holds a mechanical engineering degree and will also contribute to the GB1 design team, alongside crewmates Bleddyn Mon, Dylan Fletcher, Ben Cornish and Andrea Tesei. Racing begins in May 2027, with the final held on 10-11 July; Lines said the achievement was especially meaningful given her late father's influence on her sporting career.