The Irish Sailing Awards were one of the first to go online last year and last night they repeated the process for the 2020 awards.

The Sailor of the Year Award, in association with Afloat magazine, was won by “Flying Irishman” Tom Dolan – the Irish sailor based in France who finished in 5th place at the Figaro Solitaire last year. This is the annual French multi-stage solo offshore race and Dolan was the highest-placed non-French sailor since 1997.

17-year-old Eve McMahon of Howth won Youth Sailor of the Year for the second year in a row on the basis of her performance at the Laser European Championships in Gdansk in Poland. This was her first senior event and she was the youngest competitor in the field by some way. McMahon is now a training partner with the Irish Sailing Team and sails alongside Annalise Murphy and Aoife Hopkins.

The annual awards celebrated the achievements of inspirational people in the sailing community, showing that despite the Covid-19 pandemic, the sports were able to return to the water in a safe and responsible way.

This year’s Irish Sailing Inclusion award was won by Pat Ryan of Galway Bay Sailing Club, pictured above, a volunteer with the Sailability Programme which ran throughout the pandemic and got children with disabilities out sailing.

The Irish Sailing Volunteer of the Year Award was reintroduced this year and won by John Leahy of Dun Laoghaire for his work during the pandemic with the Cruising Association of Ireland.

He won out of dozens of nominations entered by the public from around the country.  “John’s dedication to support us is commendable and no doubt helped some with the solitude they found themselves in,” read his nomination

Nancy Roe of Galway City Sailing Club won the inaugural Irish Sailing Leadership Award, a brand new award to recognise leadership and vision. She won the award on the basis of her long-term commitment to making sailing accessible to all – particularly families and young people including the disadvantaged or disabled or those with no previous experience.

Sligo featured heavily in the line-up with Sarah Nicholson of Sligo Yacht Club winning Irish Sailing Senior Instructor of the Year, and Wild West Sailing based in Sligo winning Irish Sailing Training Centre of the Year. The Oysterhaven Centre in Cork won the Irish Sailing Sustainability Award. And Ron Hutchieson won the annual President’s Award for his voluntary work with the Laser Association spanning over 40 years.

 

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