The World Sailing Awards 2021, celebrating the outstanding achievements and exceptional contributions to sailing, is now open for online voting.
A record number of athletes and projects have been nominated in this remarkable period for global sailing.
This year’s winners will be decided by public vote live on the World Sailing Awards 2021 online show on 2 December – have your say and vote now here.
Rolex World Sailor of the Year Awards: male and female categories
2021 marks the 20th year of support by Rolex for the World Sailor of the Year Award, the most prestigious individual awards of recognition in sailing.
A total of 13 athletes – including Olympic medallists, major offshore series winners, a kite world champion and new around the world record setter- have been shortlisted.
The winners will have their name engraved on the iconic marble and silver trophy depicting the globe, crowned with five silver spinnakers representing the continents, as well as a souvenir they will keep close to them forever.
Australia’s Tom Slingsby has been nominated for male Rolex World Sailor of the Year.
World Sailing 11th Hour Racing Sustainability Award
World Sailing and 11th Hour Racing joined forces in 2018 to celebrate the delivery of high impact and replicable sustainability within the maritime industry aligned to World Sailing’s Sustainability Agenda 2030.
One of the four projects shortlisted will win the 10,000 USD prize to fund their continued sustainability efforts and the iconic trophy made from recycled carbon fibre from an America’s Cup boat infused with bio resin.
“The four finalists for the Award represent the incredible breadth of 2021 applicants,” said Todd McGuire, managing director, 11th Hour Racing. “I am enthusiastic for the future of our sport to see the variety of sustainability initiatives from working to increase diversity in sailing to removing the barriers to entry along with classes, design initiatives, and research and development working towards a circular economy.”
More about Rolex World Sailor of the Year Awards 2021
World Sailing launched the World Sailor of the Year Awards in 1994 to reward individual sailors for outstanding achievements in the sport.
Since 2001, Rolex has sponsored these awards – this year marks the 20-year milestone of the Rolex Sailor of the Year Awards. See past winners here.
World Sailing’s 146 Member National Associations and its 119 Classes have nominated a record number of 39 athletes representing a total of 19 nations from across the entire discipline spectrum for the Rolex World Sailor of the Year Awards 2021.
These nominations have been shortlisted by an expert nine-strong panel, including five former World Sailing Award winners – Jo Aleh (NZL), Theresa Zabell (ESP), Santiago Lange (ARG), Mateusz Kusznierewicz (POL) and Shirley Robertson (GBR) – alongside Dee Caffari (GBR), Craig Leweck (USA), Yann Rocherieux (FRA) and Luca Rizzotti (ITA).
