World Sailing Awards set to honour the highest achievers in sailing

The World Sailing Awards 2022, celebrating excellence and achievement in sailing, will take place on Tuesday 25 October 2022, starting from 16.30 UTC.

The 90-minute ceremony, hosted by Alec Wilkinson and Shirley Robertson OBE, will be broadcast live on the World Sailing YouTube channel from the W Hotel – Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

Headlining the awards ceremony will be the Rolex World Sailor of the Year where a male and female winner, decided by a panel of experts and a public vote, will be announced.

Also being presented will be the World Sailing 11th Hour Racing Sustainability Award which celebrates the delivery of high-impact, highly-replicable sustainability initiatives, aligned to World Sailing’s Sustainability Agenda 2030.

Thousands of votes have already been registered for both awards and online voting will remain open until 0200 UTC on Tuesday 25 October.

The World Sailing Awards 2022 will also name a Team of the Year in recognition of the personification of integrity, ambition, resilience and resourcefulness, and Boat of the Year in recognition of outstanding boat design, innovative concepts and ground-breaking technological advancements that are changing the face of sailing, pioneering change across the world.

In addition, the Beppe Croce Trophy will be awarded to an individual who has made an outstanding voluntary contribution to the sport of sailing, and the President’s Development Award will be presented to an individual or organisation in honour of their contribution to the growth and development of sailing, either nationally or internationally.

Rolex World Sailor of the Year
Nine athletes have been nominated for the Rolex World Sailor of the Year 2022 – including world champions, Olympic medallists and world record holders.

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.

The 2022 Rolex World Sailor of the Year finalists are:

Female category

Hélène Noesmoen(FRA)
Odile van Aanholt& Annette Duetz (NED)
Caterina Marianna Banti(ITA)
Male category

Ruggero Tita(ITA)
Jean-Baptiste Bernaz(FRA)
Nicolas Goyard(FRA)
Bart Lambriex& Floris van der Werken (NED)
More details about the nominees and their achievements can be found here.

World Sailing 11th Hour Racing Sustainability Award 2022
Four exceptional initiatives have been shortlisted for the World Sailing 11th Hour Racing Sustainability Award 2022, representing projects that have the potential to transform the maritime industry and have a positive impact on the environment.

The 2022 nominees are:

The Flipflopi Project
Fundación Ecomar
EurILCA Sustainability Program
Greenboats