Youth Sailing in Australia: Interview with Alistair Murray, President of Australia Sailing

I interviewed Alistair Murray, President of Australia Sailing, to find out more about youth pathways in Australia, and why they weren't sending a team. He talked about the situation where youth classes are attracting 30 to 40 boats, but that the kids usually come from sailing families. Sailing is a hugely successful Olympic sport for Australia, especially in more recent times. The Aussies are in second place in the all-time Olympic sailing medal table (behind Great Britain), yet the domestic fleets in some of the Olympic classes, particularly the 470, are small. Also, many of Australia's most successful sailors could walk down the street in Sydney without being recognised. It's a strange dichotomy. Alistair wants sailing to be a mainstream sport, but to do that Australia needs a lot more sailors. In the interview, he reinforces that Australian Sailing are a huge supporter of World Sailing, and he wants to see Australia represented at the Youth Worlds, but outlines how the country's geographic location, and the funding required to send a team, led them to decide not to hold the necessary trials and not to send a team in 2023 and 2024. He argues that for those who do attend the Youth Worlds it's a wonderful experience, but there are too few who get to take part. Therefore, Australian Sailing are putting their focus on the championships that each class hold and generally more of a squad based approach. He's right to say that a tiny microcosm of those who take part in our sport get to race in the Youth Sailing World Championships, but the same can be said for the Olympics and the America's Cup, and they are aspirational. The Youth Worlds needs Australia, and I argue that Australia needs to be at the Youth Worlds.