Bermuda’s Red Bull Youth America’s Cup team achieved another significant milestone during official practice racing this week.

With Olympian Cecilia Wollmann and Dimitri Stevens alternating the helm of their AC45F foiling catamaran, Team BDA recorded their first victory competing against Red Bull rivals Team Tilt, Land Rover BAR and Kaijin Team Japan in fleet racing in the Great Sound on Tuesday.

“Huge confidence builder for the team as this was the first time they have been able to test themselves against anyone as we have not been able to compete in the GC32 here in Bermuda,” Laura Cutler, the Team BDA director, said. “There were four AC45F boats on the line for the first time ever with all youth teams on board. It was really exciting to watch.”

Richard Clarke, the Team BDA head coach, said Bermuda’s sailors exceeded their own expectations.

“If you could have shown them a video in the very beginning of yesterday [Tuesday], battling tooth and nail and inches 30+ miles per hour with four other very good youth teams in AC45s, they would have never believed they could do that,” Clarke said.

“In the debrief some of them said it was the coolest sailing experience and some of them experience they’ve ever had. They were blasting along on that first reach and they think they are in the America’s Cup World Series because, of course, all the boats are branded that way so they made believe they are on TV in the World Series.

“This has been a massive learning curve for the sailors and this was certainly a milestone for our programme going forward.”

That they have only been sailing in the AC45F since last Friday, makes the team’s feat all the more impressive.

“The sailors were dying to get their hands on it and some of them couldn’t stop bouncing the first day we went to go sailing,” Clarke said. “They were like kids in a candy store and were so excited we actually had to tell a couple of them to slow down and don’t do anything rash.”

Under the Red Bull event rules, all teams are only allowed seven training days in the AC45F before Sunday.

Team BDA will look to make the most of their final day of practice racing today before handing their boat back to Oracle Team USA tomorrow.

“We are going to put in a massive day,” Clarke said. “And that’s probably going to be it because we have to give the boat back by contractual agreement.”

The Youth America’s Cup will take place on the Great Sound from June 12 to 21. The teams will be divided into two qualifying groups of six with the top four from each group advancing to the finals. The qualifiers will be held from June 12 to 16 and the finals June 20 to 21.

The aim of the Youth America’s Cup is to provide sailors ages 19 to 25 with a pathway to the America’s Cup.