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South African Sailing Newsletter February 2026

Welcome to this the 98th edition of the SA Sailing newsletter.

President's Update February 2026

When I commenced my tenure in this office, one of the goals I set myself was to establish the value proposition of South African Sailing in the minds of the sailing community.

It was not a hard sell. All it took was to explain the value of a united bargaining position in our dealings with the various authorities that impact on our activities. I am pleased to report that I have not heard the plaintive “but what does South African Sailing do for me?” wail for a while. Read more...

The SA Sailing National Award Nominations are OPEN!

Please note that the nomination deadline is midnight 31 March 2026.

You have to be logged in to access the nomination form.

Once you click on the link at the end of this email, it will take you to the nomination log in page.

The awards that are up for grabs:

🏆Meritorious Ocean Race or Passage of the Year
🏆Sailor of the Year
🏆Administrator of the Year
🏆Youth Sailor of the Year
🏆Instructor of the Year
🏆Developmental Race Coach of the year
🏆Race Coach of the Year
🏆Up and Coming Race Officer/ Official
🏆Adaptive Sailing Program
🏆Outstanding Recognised Training Centre
🏆Outstanding Sailing Development Program Award
🏆Environmental Sustainability Award
🏆Club of the Year
🏆Class Association of the Year

Let’s get those nominations in!

The link to SA Sailing National Awards Policy:

Click this link to submit your nominations:

SA Sailing member benefit: Intasure boat insurance

SA Sailing is continuing to develop new direct benefits for its members and we have recently launched two benefits available to our valid paid-up members. Further offers are currently being negotiated and please contact us should you be interested in becoming a SA Sailing benefit partner. Visit the Member Benefits - South African Sailing page to click through to Intasure's online quoting system.

Ocean adventure turns icy for full-time American sailing family

After nearly eight years and 30,000 miles at sea, George and Anna Jordan’s full-time sailing life took a dramatic turn when their 65-foot schooner was unexpectedly trapped in ice off North Carolina during a Bahamas-bound voyage. The frozen setback, shared on TikTok, quickly captivated millions, proving that even seasoned ocean adventurers can be stopped in their tracks.

Read the full story on the People website: https://people.com/family-sails-together-for-eight-years-then-boat-got-stuck-in-ice-exclusive-11910241?utm_source=chatgpt.com

Sign up for the Race Official Training Programme

Did you know the SA Sailing Race Officer Training Programme makes available training material to clubs to train and develop event management resources for the club ?

The material is freely available on the website for assistant, club and district race officers.

SA Sailing, on receipt of an application from persons trained at this level, will present the successful candidates with a certificate and add them to the race official development pipeline for further development for regional and future national race officer appointment.

Visit Race Officials Training - South African Sailing and click through for all the information, requirements and to access the presentations as relates to each of the levels.

The judges and umpire programme information can also be viewed from the same page.

Dates to remember:

Regional Race Officers Workshop – 14 May 2026 @ 17h30

Regional Race Officer Workshop - South African Sailing

National Race Officers Workshop – 21 May 2026 @ 17h30

National Race Officers Workshop - South African Sailing

International Women's Day with Sail Africa sustainability session

While we celebrate National Women’s Day in August in South Africa, International Women’s Day is observed in March each year. Here’s something special to mark the occasion…

Join World Sailing this International Women’s Day for an inspiring session with SA’s own Sail Africa, a leading voice in maritime transformation. This session explores the intersection of social sustainability and gender equity, highlighting how Sail Africa’s "Girls in Sailing" and "Train to Win" programmes are creating a pipeline for young women to transition from township youth to professional mariners. Discover their unique blueprint for increasing female participation, from teaching essential swimming skills to preparing students for careers in the global maritime economy.

Click here to register: https://bit.ly/4a5q1XL

Reminder about World Sailing’s training programme on safeguarding in Sport

World Sailing launched the World Sailing Academy – a new online learning platform for the global sailing community on 17 June and part of the initial programme’s release was the "Introduction to Safeguarding in Sport".

Two more modules have since been added to the safeguarding course:

· Prevention of Safeguarding Concerns

· Responding to Safeguarding Incidents/Concerns

Safeguarding is essential to ensuring sport is both safe and enjoyable for everyone involved. As part of the international shift towards prevention-focused methodology, it's important that everyone involved in the sport takes steps to raise awareness and build a proactive, protective environment for young sailors.

Overview:

This three-module course provides the fundamental principles of safeguarding in the sport of sailing, helping you understand your role in creating a safe and respectful environment for all participants. Learn how to recognise, respond to, and report concerns to protect athletes, coaches, and volunteers.

Who should take this course:

· Sailing coaches who work directly with athletes

· Volunteers and administrators

· Race Officials

· Youth leaders and mentors

· Parents and guardians

· Anyone involved in sports organisations who wants to understand safeguarding responsibilities

For more info: https://www.sailing.org/2025/06/17/world-sailing-launches-the-world-sailing-academy-a-new-online-learning-platform-for-the-global-sailing-community/

For other course options for safeguarding awareness training, visit the SA Sailing Safeguarding Policy available on the Governance page of the website in the Policy section: Governance - South African Sailing