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Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Royal Yachting Association Northern Ireland
The RYANI board
Northern Ireland’s sailing community are being invited to apply to join new roles among the various sub-committees of the board of RYA Northern Ireland. The initiative follows the recent launch of RYANI’s strategic plan, Navigating the Future, which aims to…
Bob Harper
Bob Harper, a dedicated sailing volunteer for almost 20 years, is among those named in the King’s Birthday Honours list on Saturday (17 June). Bob is awarded an MBE for services to sailing for people with disabilities in Northern Ireland…
Kate Broderick (née Pounder)
RYA Northern Ireland have announced that they will have a member of staff taking up the new role of pathways officer in July. Kate Broderick (née Pounder) has been covering the post of active clubs coordinator in Northern Ireland since…
Artists impression of floating wind turbines that would comprise the proposed North Channel Wind project
RYA Northern Ireland has provided an update on its engagement with North Channel Wind on its offshore wind project, to be located off the East Antrim coast of Northern Ireland. The governing body recently attended a meeting, alongside RYA Scotland,…
Dun Laoghaire's Saskia Tidey (right) who sails with Freya Black on the British Sailing Team
The British Sailing Team and British Youth Sailing have joined forces to launch Crew4Gold – a ground-breaking new talent search to discover female athletes capable of becoming Olympic medal-winning 49erFX crews. The 49erFX is the women's two-person, high-performance skiff at…
Nominees and winners from Strangford Lough Yacht Club with their commodore, Fiona Chamberlain. Pictured left to right are: Max Robinson, Jack Kennedy, Fiona Chamberlain, Dan Cooke, Sarah Cushley, Cody Halliday at the RYA Northern Ireland annual awards in Belfast
Eight unsung heroes of sailing and boating have been recognised by RYA Northern Ireland at its annual awards. The awards, which were hosted by Denise Watson, took place at the Crowne Plaza in Belfast with more than 80 guests. This…
Welsh sailor Michael Beckett secured his second consecutive Princess Sofia Trophy win
The Irish Sea-based Micky Beckett secured his second consecutive Princess Sofia Trophy win as the British Sailing Team brought home four golds and two silvers from the iconic Palma regatta on Saturday. Beckett dominated the ILCA 7 fleet over the…
RYA Northern Ireland's First Ever Hall of Fame night at the Crowne Plaza in Belfast, had numerous speakers, including RYA CEO Sara Sutcliffe MBE, RYA Chair Chris Preston, RYA Northern Ireland’s Chief Operating Officer Greg Yarnall and RYA Northern Ireland’s Chair Susan McKnight. The Hall of Fame inductees were Irish Olympian and Race Officer Bill O’Hara OBE, Fireball sailor and former RYANI chair Maeve Bell OBE, GP14 sailor Curly Morris OBE and sailing historian James Nixon
Four sailors have been inducted into RYA Northern Ireland’s Hall of Fame at a special gathering in Belfast. Sailors, club members, and sports representatives from right across NI joined together in Belfast for its first-ever Hall of Fame and the launch of…
Sir Michael Arthur at the helm of a boat
The Royal Yachting Association (RYA) has announced the appointment of Professor Sir Michael Arthur, an experienced racing and cruising sailor and accomplished British academic, as the new chair of its board. Sir Michael, a member of the Royal Southampton Yacht…
Participants in a new ladies’ match racing programme run in East Antrim Boat Club’s RS Quest dinghies
RYA Northern Ireland is calling for participants to take part in research which aims to provide a better understanding of the experiences of women and girls in sailing. When it comes to participation, the number of women and girls taking…
Attendees perusing the stands on the Saturday of the 2023 RYA Dinghy & Watersports Show
The home of British aviation instead became the home of boats, boards, sails and wings of a different kind this past weekend (25-26 February) as thousands of water lovers took over Farnborough International for the 2023 RYA Dinghy & Watersports…
Mixed sailing cruisers gather for the 2022 Cockle Island BC  Regatta on Belfast Lough
Handicap systems are sometimes the stuff of controversy. So what will transpire when Belfast Lough Yachting Conference replaces the NHC system with the Royal Ocean Racing Club YTC (Yacht Time Correction) system remains to be seen. Cockle Island Boat Club…
RYA Dinghy Show at Farnborough
Returning to Farnborough International this weekend (25-26 February) is the RYA Dinghy & Watersports Show - the season-opening Show organised by the RYA to encourage and inspire everyone to get afloat. RYA staff will be on hand (stand A10) to…
Action from the RYA Marlow Ropes Women's Match Racing Championships
The sell-out RYA Marlow Ropes Women's Match Racing Championship finale saw two Scottish skippers battling for the title, with Alison Morrish's team taking the crown and Irish Flying Fifteen champion Juliette Kennedy of Strangford Lough finishing fourth.  The latest edition…
A young boy enjoying sailing with a guardian in Peterborough
Initial findings from the Royal Yachting Association’s annual Parent, Guardian and Carer Survey show that parents with children taking part in boating or sailing believe them to benefit from increased levels of confidence, team building and leadership skills thanks to…
RYA Northern Ireland logo
RYA Northern Ireland have launched an OnBoard Development Day which will be hosted by the South Lakes Leisure Centre in Craigavon on Saturday 11 March 2023. OnBoard, RYA’s grassroots programme, is relatively new in Northern Ireland. Its aim is to…

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]