RTLI Founders, America3 America’s Cup All-Women’s Team Members Linda Lindquist and Katie Pettibone; Inspiring and Advocating for Opportunity for 30 Years
Rising Tide Leadership Institute Co-Founders, Linda Lindquist and Katie Pettibone met when they were selected for the first all-women’s sailing team to compete for the 1995 America’s Cup; it was a banner year for women reaching high places:
- The United Nations 4th Women’s World Conference in Beijing was shifting the world view on women’s rights and issues.
- Eileen Collins became the first female pilot of a Space Shuttle on February 3, 1995, during the STS-63 mission. This historic flight marked a significant milestone in NASA’s efforts to promote gender equality in space exploration.
On April 3, 1995, Sandra Day O'Connor made history by presiding over the Supreme Court, marking a significant moment in U.S. judicial history. As the first woman to serve on the Court, her leadership represented a breakthrough for gender equality in the legal profession.
“As women achieve power, the barriers will fall. As society sees what women can do, as women see what women can do, there will be more women out there doing things, and we’ll all be better off for it.”— Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, Address to the 16th Annual Olin Conference: Women in Power, November 14, 1990
- On January 13, 1995, an all-female team participated in the America’s Cup sailing competition for the first time, marking a significant milestone in the sport’s history.
There were equal parts positive momentum and high pressure as this team became a focal point for women’s achievement worldwide. Everyone knew that their campaign was about more than a sailing trophy… no matter how prestigious.
The A3 team certainly knew that an all-women’s team competing against all-men’s teams for the oldest trophy in sport would make history. But it wasn’t until young girls began to wait outside their compound gate in San Diego for their autographs and women from all over the world began sending words of encouragement that they realized that they were inspiring women across many sectors to pursue bigger lives and to live out their own dreams without gender limits.
After the 1995 America’s Cup, Katie and Linda’s successes in high-performance, high-tech sailing competitions continued to equip them for organizational excellence and leadership roles in their non-sailing, male-dominated career fields. They asked themselves “how can we empower girls and women through our sport?”
The concept for leveraging women competing in high-technology sports to inspire, educate and equip women as high-performance leaders began to take shape. In 2012, they formed the Rising Tide Leadership Institute, to create a deliberate path to raise global awareness, inspire and equip women with leadership skills at a time when global research and data confirmed that investing in girls and women will create measurable economic benefits for all.
(Below): Some of the MIGHTY MARY team members saw the film for the first time at the Nantucket Film Festival!
(Above): Members of the MIGHTY MARY Team gathered for the first time in 30 years at Dawn Riley’s OakCliff sailing training center to film segments of the film. It was a memorable and amazing reunion!
“I’m proud to be a part of this powerful documentary that shines a light on the extraordinary courage of the women aboard Mighty Mary. This team was groundbreaking, and I hope their story inspires a new generation of women to dream bigger and never give up.” – Elizabeth Banks, People Magazine
ABOUT THE FILM:
Narrated by Elizabeth Banks and Hugh Jackman, directed by award-winning documentary filmmaker (and Olympian) Mary Mazzio, and produced by Mazzio along with Allison Abner (writer for Narcos, West Wing, Imperfect Women) and Atlanta Hawks owner and NBA All-Star, Grant Hill, in partnership with Skydance Sports and Paramount’s Republic Pictures, Mighty Mary chronicles an amazing group of “we eat nails for breakfast” type of women: the first all-women’s sailing team to contend for the famed America’s Cup, the holy grail for one of sport’s most elite and exclusive racing events.
This team was groundbreaking, beginning with an advertisement in the New York Times (prompting hilarious responses from a wide swath of Americana who thought they might have what it takes to sail in the America’s Cup, including a woman flexing in a bikini next to a cactus). From there, a group of world class and Olympic sailors as well as Olympic rowers came together, a team which included a deaf sailor, a Native Hawaiian sailor, and the first African American sailor to ever win an America’s Cup race (as a coach of this novice, erstwhile team). What was dismissed as a publicity stunt turned into something unimaginable. This motley crew (sailing aboard Mighty Mary) stunningly eliminated Stars & Stripes from contention, helmed by 4-time America’s Cup winner, Dennis Conner (“Mr. America’s Cup”). However, a secret backroom deal the night before the race upended that result. This is a true underdog story about a team which reshaped what could be possible in a sport that had long been inaccessible.
Winner of the Maria Mitchell Visionary Award at the 2026 Nantucket Film Festival, the film will open theatrically across the country on September 11, 2026. And amazingly, on Sept 21, 2026, the America’s Cup itself will usher in the 38th running of the Cup in Naples, Italy with a signature event featuring Mighty Mary.
Experience the Inspiration: MIGHTY MARY, is coming to a theatre near you!
