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Royal Yachting Association Reveals New Director of Racing and Performance Director

3rd August 2022
Mark Robinson MBE
Mark Robinson MBE

Heralding a new era for RYA Racing, today sees the announcement that Nick Scott will be taking up the Director of Racing position this autumn and Mark Robinson MBE is assuming a new role as Performance Director following the British Sailing Team’s success at Tokyo 2020.

As Director of Racing, Nick will oversee the development of sail racing within the UK, including determining and developing the strategy of youth, junior, keelboat and coach development programmes. Formerly the RYA Olympic Manager, Mark will focus on leading the team responsible for executing the Paris 2024 strategy and building towards LA 2028.

Nick ScottNick Scott

Nick has been involved in performance sport since his time on the Sailing World Class Programme as an athlete. The former Olympic Development Squad sailor and RYA Scotland High Performance Manager returns to the RYA following two Olympic cycles with the English Institute of Sport, first at British Triathlon and latterly at British Rowing.

A former sailing coach and civil engineer by training, Nick brings to the RYA a wealth of experience in leading performance planning, sports science, and innovation strategies in the pursuit of Olympic and Paralympic medals – and as the brother of Giles Scott MBE, four-time Finn Gold Cup winner and two-time Olympic gold medallist, Nick knows what it takes to reach the top!

Commenting on his appointment, Nick said: “I can’t wait to get started in this role. It’s an exciting time for sailing in the UK and I look forward to bringing my experiences from other sports and working with the sailing community to continue to create great experiences of racing and develop the sailing superstars of the future.”

Newly promoted Mark Robinson MBE, who has more than 35 years’ experience in the sport as a competitor, coach, and National Team Manager led Australia's Paralympic sailors to the top of the medal table at Rio 2016, and at Tokyo 2020 delivered the most successful Olympics for our British sailors since Beijing 2008.

"Topping the Tokyo sailing medal table, with three golds, one silver and one bronze, confirmed the British sailing Team as the most successful national Olympic sailing team of all time. It’s a true privilege to be given the opportunity to lead the team into Paris 2024 and beyond," Mark said.

Sara Sutcliffe MBE, Chief Executive of the RYA, said: “We’re delighted to be announcing these key appointments. Success breeds success and the RYA has been able to establish one of the best sport development programmes in the world, with a clear and direct link between Olympic success and the clubs and schools at the grassroots of sailing.

“I’m confident that Nick’s appointment, alongside Mark Robinson’s new role as Performance Director, will see our sport go from strength to strength, while at the same time inspiring future participants, volunteers, coaches and champions to ensure a thriving UK club racing scene.”

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About the Royal Yachting Association (RYA) Northern Ireland 

  • The RYA is the national body for dinghy, yacht and motor cruising, all forms of sail racing, RIBs and sports boats, windsurfing and personal watercraft and a leading representative for inland waterways cruising.
  • The RYA is recognised by Government, the media and opinion formers as the representative body and voice for the activities that it represents. It continually fights for the rights and freedoms of its 112,000 personal members.
  • The RYA has more than 1,500 affiliated clubs and classes, which represent some 350,000 boaters throughout the UK. It is estimated that 4 million people in the UK take part in boating activity annually.
  • The RYA also sets and maintains recognised standards for training for both leisure and commercial boating through a network of more than 2,400 RYA Recognised Training Centres across 58 countries. More than 250,000 people per year complete RYA training courses.
  • The RYA is responsible for one of the UK’s most successful Olympic medal-winning sports. Our coaching and development schemes actively support 800 of our country’s top sailors, from talented juniors to Olympic and World champions.
  • The RYA is committed to promoting all forms of boating and making them accessible to everyone. For more information please visit www.rya.org.uk.
  • The Royal Yachting Association Northern Ireland (RYA NI) acts for the RYA in Northern Ireland (NI) and the Chairman of RYA NI is invited to join the Irish Sailing Association (ISA) Policy Review Committee.
  • You can find the RYA Northern Ireland at Sketrick House, GE8, Jubilee Road, Newtownards, BT23 4YH.
  • RYA NI is a company limited by guarantee – Registration number NI 51945
  • Contact RYA NI: Tel: 02891 827154 email: [email protected]