Nominations for the 2011 ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year Awards have been announced – and Britain has more nominees than any other nation.

In the women’s category, 38-year-old Dee Caffari became, in 2011, the first woman ever to have sailed solo around the world, non-stop, three times.

And Jamaican-born SKUD18 helm Alexandra Rickham, 30, claimed the IFDS Disabled Sailing World title for the third consecutive time, shortly followed by the ISAF Sailing World Cup.

Leading the men’s category is Ben Ainslie, at 34 already triple Olympic
champion and recently announced as going for his fourth consecutive gold
medal next year, in the Finn class. Ben is the current ISAF Match
Racing World Champion and ISAF Sailing World Cup Champion.

The Sailor of the Year Awards began in 1994 to honour outstanding achievement in sailing, and they are regarded as the sport’s highest recognition. This year nine nominees have been selected, but only one man and one woman can take the trophy. The 2011 winners will be announced in Puerto Rico on 8 November.

Website of the International Sailing Federation www.sailing.org