Youngest Yachtsman of Year

Hattie Rogers, aged just 22, has become the youngest ever recipient of the Yachtsman of the Year Award. Rogers, from Lymington, received the prestigious prize in March for her successes in foiling last year, including winning the SailGP Waszp Inspire Grand Final in San Francisco.

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While she is only at the beginning of her sailing career, Rogers’s pathway demonstrates how quickly the sport is changing, especially for female high performance sailors. She hails from a traditional sailing dynasty – her grandfather was the late Jeremy Rogers, creator of the Contessa 32, and she is the daughter of yacht designer Simon Rogers. In 2019 she competed in the Rolex Fastnet Race on the Contessa 32 Assent with Simon and her uncle, Kit Rogers. However, she followed a different route into top level competition.

“I think for me, my pathway has just been about enjoying my sailing. That’s always been the biggest thing for me, just keep on loving it. But I grew up sailing on the Solent with grandpa and dad in the Contessa, and then on the Salterns Lake in Lymington being pushed around in my Oppie in waders by dad, and then in a scow, sailing to get ice cream up the river. It very, very quickly became more competitive though.”

Rogers competed in the Optimist at a high level, winning both British junior and senior Ladies National Champion titles. However, while many of her peer group progressed into the double-handed 420 class, she opted for the 29er.