US Sailing’s Rolex Yachtsman & Yachtswoman of the Year Awards
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Jake Fish, US Sailing, 401.683.0800 or
Jan Harley, Media Pro Int’l for Rolex Watch U.S.A., 401.849.0220
Hardesty and Tunnicliffe Are US Sailing’s
2011 Rolex Yachtsman & Yachtswoman of the Year
PORTSMOUTH, R.I. (January 11, 2012) – Etchells World Champion Bill Hardesty (San Diego, Calif.) and ISAF (International Sailing Federation) Sailing World Champion Anna Tunnicliffe (Plantation, Fla.) today were named US Sailing’s 2011 Rolex Yachtsman and Yachtswoman of the Year. A shortlist of eight male and seven female sailors – determined from nominations submitted by members of US Sailing – was evaluated by a panel of sailing journalists who selected these two sailors for the noteworthy distinction. The winners will be honored on February 22, 2012, during a luncheon at the St. Francis Yacht Club in San Francisco, when they will be presented with specially-engraved Rolex timepieces.
Established in 1961 by US Sailing and sponsored by Rolex Watch, U.S.A. since 1980, the annual presentation of US Sailing's Rolex Yachtsman and Yachtswoman of the Year awards are considered the sport's ultimate recognition of an individual’s outstanding on-the-water achievements for the calendar year. Over its history the coveted award has been presented to 40 men and 32 women.
2011 Rolex Yachtsman of the Year: Bill Hardesty (San Diego, Calif.) has been named the 2011 Rolex Yachtsman of the Year. First shortlisted for the award in 2008 – when he won the Etchells World Championship – Hardesty reclaimed that class’ top title in 2011 after a dominating performance in an 81-strong fleet. He had several other class wins, including the Etchells Midwinters West Championship, and transitioned from skipper to tactician and translated his skills into wins in a number of additional classes which led the selection panel to commend the diversity of his achievements during the year. Hardesty’s notable performances as tactician included winning the 47th Congressional Cup in Catalina 37s and the CMRC Grade 2 Invitational in Tom 28s, along with top finishes at the Rolex Big Boat Series in Express 37s (second) and the Farr 40 World Championships (fourth).
From a personal standpoint, however, Hardesty is most proud of winning the ISAF (International Sailing Federation) Match Racing World Championship as tactician for skipper Ian Williams (GBR). The world championship series title was earned through wins of the Portimão Portugal Match Cup in Portugal, the Stena Match Cup in Sweden, and the Monsoon Cup in Malaysia.
“This is a huge honor,” said Hardesty after receiving word that he had been named the 2011 Rolex Yachtsman of the Year. “The long list of past winners is very impressive and includes people who I have always considered to be the best in the world. I would first like to thank Rolex for making sailing what it is today. Without their sponsorship of sailing, the sport would be a lot different.”
“A lot of credit goes to the teams I raced with this past year,” Hardesty continued. “Sailing is truly a group effort and winning this award would never have been possible without great teammates: the Etchells World Championship team of Steve Hunt, Mandi Markee and Craig Leweck, and Team GAC Pindar skippered by Ian Williams.
Hardesty graduated from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in 1998, the same year he received College Sailor of the Year honors from the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association. A native of Council Bluffs, Iowa, Hardesty grew up sailing in San Diego and learned to sail with his father on Hobie beach cats prior to joining the junior sailing program at Mission Bay Yacht Club and subsequently San Diego Yacht Club.
After college graduation and a brief Laser campaign for the Olympics, Hardesty worked for a power plant in Los Angeles and then a solar tube company in San Diego. Now a professional sailor, he spends more than half the year living aboard a Wauquiez Hood 38 on which he is currently cruising Central America.
2011 Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year: ISAF (International Sailing Federation) Sailing World Champion Anna Tunnicliffe (Plantation, Fla.) has been named the 2011 Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year. Shortlisted for the honor for the seventh consecutive year, she is the first woman in the award’s history to earn it in four consecutive years. A member of the selection panel noted her level of dedication to the sport, while another remarked that she is a tremendous ambassador for sailing. She joins the rare company of four-time winners JJ Fetter Isler (1986, ’91, ’97, ’00) and Ted Turner (1970, ’73, ’77, ’79). Only five-time award winner Betsy Alison (1981, ’82, ’84, ’93 and ’98) has eclipsed them.
“I’m honored to win the 2011 Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year award,” said Tunnicliffe. “It is a great acknowledgment of Team Maclaren’s success in 2011. Molly [Vandemoer], Debbie [Capozzi] and I worked incredibly hard to achieve our 2011 goals and we are now focused on our 2012 goal – to win a gold medal in Weymouth.”
Tunnicliffe, the 2008 Laser Radial Olympic Gold Medalist, committed to a match racing campaign in the Elliott 6m two years ago with a goal of again representing the U.S.A. at the Olympic Games. During 2011 she skippered Team Maclaren to podium finishes in three ISAF Sailing World Cup events: US Sailing’s Rolex Miami OCR in Florida (silver); Princess Sofia Trophy in Spain (bronze); and Skandia Sail For Gold in Weymouth, England, venue of the 2012 Olympic Regatta (gold). The year culminated with a win of the ISAF Sailing World Championships that also qualified the USA a berth in the Elliott 6m event at the 2012 Olympic Games.
Also notable were Tunnicliffe’s win of the Santa Maria Cup and her second-place finish at the Rolex International Women’s Keelboat Championship, both of which were sailed in J/22s.
The 29-year-old Tunnicliffe, a native of England, grew up in Perrysburg, Ohio, sailing from the North Cape Yacht Club in Michigan. She attended Old Dominion University (Norfolk, Va.), where she earned ICSA All-American honors three times (2003, ’04, ’05), and was named the 2005 Quantum Female College Sailor of the Year. A member of US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics, Tunnicliffe currently holds the number one ranking for women on the ISAF World Match Race Rankings. She is the 2011 ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year, a distinction she also received in 2009.
2011 Racing Resumes for Anna Tunnicliffe and Bill Hardesty
Anna Tunnicliffe
ISAF Sailing World Championship (1st/32 Elliott 6m)
Overall, ISAF Sailing World Cup 2010-11 season (1st/Elliott 6m)
U.S. Olympic Team Qualifier (1st/8 Elliott 6m)
Skandia Sail For Gold, Weymouth, England (1st/24 Elliott 6m)
BoatU.S. Santa Maria Cup, Annapolis, Md. (1st/8 J/22s)
Buddy Melges Challenge, Sheboygan, Wisc. (1st/16 Elliott 6m)
US Sailing's Rolex International Women’s Keelboat Championship, Rochester, N.Y. (2nd/36 J/22s)
Stena Women's Match Cup, SWE (2nd/10 Elliott 6m)
US Sailing’s Rolex Miami OCR, Fla. (2nd/24 Elliott 6m)
Princess Sofia Trophy, Palma de Mallorca, Spain (3rd/24 Elliott 6m)
Delta Llloyd Regatta, Medemblik, NED (3rd/10 Elliott 6m)
Snipe Nationals (1st/79 Snipe)
Bill Hardesty
Etchells World Championship, San Diego, Calif. (1st/81 boats)
47th Congressional Cup, Long Beach, Calif. (1st/10 Catalina 37s – tactician)
Monsoon Cup, Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia (1st/12 boats – tactician)
Portimão Portugal Match Cup, Portimão Portugal (1st/12 boats – tactician)
Stena Mach Cup, Marstrand, Sweden (1st/14 boats – tactician)
CMRC Grade 2 Invitational, Chicago, Ill. (1st/10 Tom28s)
VIII Open de España Match Race, Calpe, Spain, (1st/12 Tom28s – tactician)
SDYC Etchells One Design Weekend, San Diego, Calif. (1st/39 boats)
Etchells Midwinters West Championship, San Diego, Calif. (1st/45 boats)
Sailing Supply Etchells Orca Bowl, San Diego, Calif. (1st/46 boats)
Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac, Chicago, Ill. (1st Section 2, 4th overall – tactician)
Rolex Big Boat Series, San Francisco, Calif. (2nd/9 Express 37s – tactician)
Ugotta Regatta, Harbor Springs, Mich. (2nd/3 boats Division 1 - tactician)
St. Moritz Match Race, St. Moritz, Switzerland (3rd/12 boats – tactician)
Farr 40 World Championship, Sydney, Australia (4th/20 boats - tactician)
Match Race France WMRT, Marseille, France (10th/12 J/80s – tactician)
About Rolex Watch U.S.A.
Since Rolex Watch U.S.A. first presented timepieces to America's Cup defenders in 1958, the company has consistently recognized and encouraged excellence in every important arena of competitive sailing, including US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics preparation, US Sailing championships, disabled sailing, offshore, one-design and women's events.
About US Sailing
The United States Sailing Association (US Sailing), the national governing body for sailing, provides leadership, integrity, and growth for the sport in the United States. Founded in 1897 and headquartered in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, US Sailing is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization. US Sailing offers training and education programs for instructors and race officials, supports a wide range of sailing organizations and communities, issues offshore rating certificates, and provides administration and oversight of competitive sailing across the country, including National Championships and the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org.