Ireland’s Mark Lyttle has been elected President of the ILCA Class Association at the organisation’s Annual General Meeting in Beijing.

Lyttle, a former Olympian and long-time ILCA sailor from the National Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire, succeeds Tracy Usher. He said he was “grateful for Tracy’s commitment and passion”, noting Usher’s role in guiding the transition from Laser to ILCA. The World Council has also elected Usher to the ILCA Hall of Fame.

 Ireland’s Mark Lyttle has been elected President of the ILCA Class Association in Beijing and is congratulated by outgoing President Tracy Usher Photo: ILCA

Lyttle began sailing Lasers in 1977 and represented Ireland at the 1996 Olympic Games. He has lived in London since then and races regularly at Queen Mary Sailing Club, but is a frequent visitor home to Dublin Bay, not least when he was crowned Laser Grand Master World Champion in 2018. He has competed at multiple Masters Worlds and Europeans and says the class has been central to his family life.

He described ILCA as “the most inclusive dinghy there is”, highlighting its broad age range and its local, national, international and Olympic pathways.

As President, he plans to lead a World Council that “listens to our community, is open and responsive and works together to promote our class and the sport as a whole”.

Lyttle says he will publish a report in December outlining the AGM outcomes, initiatives and priorities for the year ahead.