British sailor (born 1963)
Neal McDonald (born 22 July 1963)[ 1] is a British sailor who has competed in seven Volvo Ocean Races .
Sailing career
Born in Brighton , McDonald is a qualified naval architect and a member of the Royal Corps of Naval Constructors .[ 2] [ 3] He represented Great Britain at the 1988 Summer Olympics , sailing a Flying Dutchman with Roger Yeoman . They placed sixth in the event .
He then won the 1989 International 14 World Championship with his brother, Duncan McDonald before campaigning in the 49er class, becoming European Champion.[ 4] [ 5] [ 2]
McDonald first sailed in the Whitbread Round the World Race during the 1993-94 event on Fortuna . The boat broke its mast twice in the first 24 hours of the race, and ended up retiring.[ 6]
At the 1995 Louis Vuitton Cup , McDonald was the mainsail trimmer and tactician for Sydney ’95 .[ 7]
He competed in the 1997–98 Whitbread Round the World Race on Silk Cut before sailing The Race in 2000/1 aboard Grant Dalton 's Club Med .[ 4] Club Med won The Race.
He then briefly joining GBR Challenge to help them prepare for the 2003 Louis Vuitton Cup .[ 5] [ 8] He left the team to concentrate on preparation for the 2001–02 Volvo Ocean Race , which he sailed with Assa Abloy . McDonald was promoted to skipper of Assa Abloy at the end of the first leg, replacing Roy Heiner . With co-skipper Mark Rudiger , Assa Abloy finished second, winning three of the legs - including leg 3 which was the 2001 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race .[ 9] [ 10] [ 11] His wife, Lisa McDonald , was the skipper of another entrant, Amer Sports Too .[ 10] [ 12]
For the 2005–06 Volvo Ocean Race , McDonald was the skipper of the Ericsson Racing Team . Ericsson Racing Team was beset by technical problems and, after three poor legs, McDonald was demoted to watch captain for leg 5, being replaced by John Kostecki .[ 2] Following the leg, McDonald was promoted back to skipper for the rest of the race.[ 13]
He then joined Victory Challenge for the 2007 Louis Vuitton Cup , where he was their traveller and strategist.[ 5] He was then a watch captain with Green Dragon Racing Team for the 2008–09 Volvo Ocean Race .
McDonald completed his sixth Volvo Ocean Race with Team Telefónica in 2011-12 , again as a watch captain.[ 14] Following the race he announced his retirement.[ 2]
He accepted an on-shore role for the 2014–15 Volvo Ocean Race , being appointed the performance manager for Azzam .[ 15] [ 16] [ 17] [ 18] However, he joined the sailing crew for leg 3, replacing an injured Phil Harmer .[ 19] [ 20] [ 21]
He has been appointed the sports and performance director of Mapfre for the 2017–18 Volvo Ocean Race .[ 6]
References
^ "Neal McDonald" . Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ a b c d "British sailor Neal McDonald calls time on brilliant Volvo Ocean Race career. One question: will he come back?" . Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ "Sailing: McDonald takes to authority with ease" . Independent.co.uk . 5 January 2002. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022.
^ a b McDonald, Neal. "America's Cup men have unfortunately missed the boat" . Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ a b c "Neal McDonald joins Victory Challenge - Yachting World" . 11 October 2006. Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ a b www.sailweb.co.uk. "Volvo Ocean Race - Neal McDonald joins MAPFRE" . Archived from the original on 1 August 2017. Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ "Neal McDonald joins Victory Challenge" . Yachts and Yachting Online . Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ "GBR going all out" . Daily Echo . Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ "Assa Abloy axes skipper Roy Heiner - Australian Sailing" . www.sailing.org.au . Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ a b Laven, Interview by Kate. "Neal McDonald, Britain's most complete offshore sailor, reflects on 200,000 nautical miles" . Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ "Crew changes on Assa Abloy- Skipper Neal McDonald looks ahead" .
^ "His and Hers Yachts For Married Skippers" . The New York Times . 10 March 2002. Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ "Read, Rudiger to Join Ericsson" . www.sailingworld.com . 25 April 2006. Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ "Neal McDonald" . www.teamtelefonica.com . Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ Race, Volvo Ocean. "Neal McDonald" . Volvo Ocean Race . Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ Race, Volvo Ocean. "Abu Dhabi snap up McDonald, Khalid as familiar faces return" . Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ Race, Volvo Ocean. "McDonald back to give Abu Dhabi the cutting edge" . Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ "Veteran British Sailor to Lead Abu Dhabi Team" . www.onboardonline.com . Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ "Neal McDonald back on Azzam as replacement for injured Phil Harmer" . 31 December 2014. Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ "Neal McDonald's presence beefs up ADOR's quest for Leg 3 honours" . sport360.com . Retrieved 1 August 2017 .
^ "Neal McDonald's presence beefs up ADOR's quest for Leg 3 honours" . Retrieved 1 August 2017 .