Sébastien Schneiter and Lucien Cujean launched a 49er Olympic campaign at the beginning of 2014 with a view to Tokyo. The two-handed 49er has been an Olympic class since 2000 and is one of the most competitive.
The two sailors met in 2012 at an M2 catamaran regatta, Sebastien went on to focus on his Laser campaign winning three bronze world championship medals in 2013 while Lucien led the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup project as skipper and helmsman of the Swiss AC45.
The duo teamed up on the Decision 35 and on the GC32 and have now combined their talent and motivation towards a common goal: to win a medal at the Olympic Games in Tokyo. During their Olympic preparation, Sébastien and Lucien were selected for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro (BRA), and finished 13th in the 49er class !
In 2018, they qualify Switzerland for Tokyo, finishing 10th at Aarhus Worlds. The games are postponed to 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Sebastien and Lucien finish 14th at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Crew
Sebastien Schneiter – Helmsman
Lucien Cujean – Crew
Tanguy Cariou – Sports director
The boat
Crew: 2 people on trapeze
Length overall: 4.9m
Beam without wracks: 1.75m
Beam with wracks: 2.75m
Weight: 74kg
Sail area (mainsail and jib): 20m2
Spinnaker area: 37m2
49er calendar
| 2014 | 49er familiarisation period | 122 days of training |
| 2015 | Full time 49er sailing | 202 days of sailing, of which 48 are race days |
| 2016 | Olympic year | Tokyo 2020 target review after the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games 120 days of training |
| 2017 | Qualify for the 2018 SST National Team | 250 days of training and global regattas. Result target: gold fleet. |
| 2018 | Qualify Switzerland for Tokyo 2020 | Training & Racing for more than 200 days. Result target: top 10 at Worlds & Euros. |
| 2019 | Top 5 49er sailors | Training and racing for more than 200 days. Result target: Top 8 at worlds and Top 5 at Euros. |
| 2021 | Olympic Games, Tokyo | Goal: Olympic medal! |