Vancouver sailor set to lead Team Canada in first-ever women's America's Cup

A team of women will be setting sail for the America's Cup in Barcelona this weekend. It marks the first time women have been able to compete in the 173-year-old sailing competition.

Team Canada’s crew will be led by Vancouver’s Isabella Bertold, who says it will be transformative for the sport.

"We see so many young girls dropping out of sports before they even turn 18,” she told CTV News.

“A big part of that is they just don’t see their role models on TV the same way that male athletes do,” she continued.

Bertold and her team are already in Spain preparing for their event, one she says has been a long time coming.

"We've been training for this for two years now, it feels odd to train for such a long time just for one race, so the fact that were just a few days away from that first race is very exciting now,” she said.

Sponsorships for the competition include Telus and RBC, with the team sailing under the banner of Concord Pacific Racing.

Team Canada will be one of 12 in the women’s event, Bertold says all the women in the competition hope this will be a pivotal moment for the sport.

“I keep saying that this about more than just who wins out on the water. We’re leading the way for the next generation and setting a foundation,” said Bertold.

The women's races will be held from Oct. 5 - 13 and will be covered on TSN as well as the America’s Cup website. https://www.americascup.com/events/puig-womens-americas-cup

Canada’s first race is scheduled for Sunday.

With files from CTV Vancouver’s Yasmin Gandham.