DINGHY sailor Nick Craig from Woking, Surrey, won the coveted title of YJA Pantaenius Yachtsman of the Year for 2011, breaking an RSYC tradition of more than a decade.
The announcement was made at an awards ceremony held at Trinity House, London.
Nick, 37, and the father of twins, not only won the highly competitive OK World Championship in 2011 but in doing so also became the only person ever, to hold the World, UK National and Inland championship titles. He also won the RS400 National championship. To conclude an outstanding year, Nick went on to secure an overall win of the extremely challenging Endeavour Championship for the 5th time.
The Endeavour Championship is an annual invitation only event run by the Royal Corinthian Yacht Club at Burnham-on-Crouch, to determine the overall dinghy champion of champions from the UK’s most popular dinghy racing classes. Winning the Endeavour Trophy is and always has been recognised as an ultimate dinghy racing achievement.
So to win five times, representing different classes throughout the years, puts Nick amongst the most versatile and talented dinghy sailors in the world. His sailing began with the Frensham Ponds Sailing Club, near Farnham, Surrey.
The other finalists for the YJA Pantaenius Yachtsman of the Year award were
Ben Ainslie CBE. Despite having already won three Olympic Gold medals and a Silver, Ben is far from sitting back and basking in the glory of his past successes. In this pre Olympic year he has worked hard to achieve yet more spectacular results including winning the 2011 Weymouth Skandia Sail for Gold Regatta and the Weymouth and Portland International Regatta (Olympic test event). His outstanding performance has once again earned him a place within Team GB to compete at the 2012 London Olympics.
Dee Caffari MBE. In the 2010/11 two handed Barcelona World Race 38 year old Dee and her co skipper, Spaniard Anna Corbella finished in 6th place. On completion of this race Dee entered the record books as the only woman to have circumnavigated the globe, non stop, three times.
Nick's win breaks a long held association of the coveted title being won by a Royal Southampton member. It is the first time in 14 years that an RSYC member has not figured in the list of current winners engraved on the trophy. Both Ben Ainslie and Dee Caffari have already held the title.
The last was quadriplegic sailor Geoff Holt, MBE, last year's winner who presented the trophy to Nick at Trinity House.
