Sunday Seminars: For the Love of Sailing
Dates
Sunday 21 January | 2pm - 3pm
Included with General Admission | Bookings required
Ages
Suitable for ages 10+
Duration
1 hour
Site access information
WA Maritime Museum is mostly accessible, excluding tours aboard the HMAS Ovens. Call 1300 134 081 for assistance. More about accessibility and amenities >
Sunday Seminars: Sailing with a Disability on Sunday, 21 January 2024 is cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances; our apologies for any inconvenience caused.
We welcome you to still take the opportunity to explore the exhibition Australia II: 40 Years On and our permanent galleries
Inspired by the historic impact of the America's Cup win in 1983 by the crew and syndicate of the Australia II, we explore the sport of competitive sailing.
The Royal Perth Yacht Club in WA became the official home of the America's Cup for the intervening period from 1983 until 1987 when Fremantle hosted the America's Cup defence race. This was the first non-American hosts of this coveted sporting trophy.
This seminar series will focus on the broad community of sporting people who have grinded, trimmed and hoisted their way to success on board yachts in Australian waters, and those who have been inspired to become part of the business of yachting; the syndicates who have mounted and financed these sporting challenges.
Dive in and join a series of speakers discussing the challenges and changes emerging in the sport of sailing through the last 40 years.
Seminar sessions
Find out what challenges can be overcome in sailing, beyond the wind and the waves.
Panelists: Colin Harrison, Belinda Stowell Brett.
Sailing is a mixed ability sport, allowing athletes with disabilities to take to the waves and compete, with the freedom enjoyed by able-bodied people. Using specially designed boats, modified launching sites, and dedicated support groups, Australian athletes with a range of disabilities have achieved great successes in the world of competitive sailing.
In this panel discussion, medal-winning sailors will help you discover the trials and triumphs of a life on the water.
Colin Harrison, a four-time Paralympian was introduced to sailing as a teenager at a youth holiday camp in Northern Wales. Joining the Thames Estuary Yacht Club in Essex, England on his return, Colin began racing small boats.
A cancer diagnosis several years later resulted in the amputation of his right arm. Colin competed in four Paralympic Games between 2004 and 2016, winning Bronze in Beijing and Gold in Rio.
Colin won two bronze medals and a silver at the 2013, 2014 and 2015 IFDS World Disabled Sailing Championships and was awarded the Order of Australia medal in 2017.
Belinda Stowell Brett migrated to Australia from Zimbabwe in 1991 and began a career in 470 class sailing at the world championships in 1998.
In 2000, Belinda and her partner Jenny Armstrong won a gold medal at the Sydney Olympic games. She competed in the Athens Games in 2004 and the London Games in 2012.
Belinda was awarded Australian Female Sailor of the year in 2001 and 2002 and inducted into the Australian Sailing Hall of Fame in 2017. She is now the WA Institute of Sport head coach of the Sailing Program.
Walk through the history of one of Australia’s most significant sporting moments in this special “behind-the-scenes” curator’s tour.
Presenter: Fred Saunders, Coordinator Exhibition and Interpretive Projects, Western Australian Museum.
In developing Australia II: 40 Years On, WA Museum curators were eager to capture the achievement of winning the America’s Cup in 1983, and what the 1987 Cup Defence meant for Fremantle. Fred Saunders delved into the archives, images and collections, and met with the people at the centre of the action in order to bring you this exhibition.
Join Fred and discover the stories and characters that made the America’s Cup races in the 1980’s such special moments in Australia’s sporting history, and learn about the behind-the-scenes work that went into developing this new exhibition.
Learn what it’s like to race a yacht from someone who knows best – an Olympic champion!
Presenter: Belinda Stowell Brett, Australian sailor and Olympic champion.
In competitive sailing you need to master your yacht, deal with all kinds of wind and wave conditions, and make better decisions than your opponents. In a long career filled with great achievements, Belinda Stowell Brett has always been willing to share her knowledge and enthusiasm for the sport of sailing.
Come along and find out what it takes to sail fast, with the world watching!
Belinda Stowell Brett migrated to Australia from Zimbabwe in 1991 and began a career in 470 class sailing at the world championships in 1998. In a boat called ‘The Ugly Duckling’, at the Sydney Olympics Games in 2000 Belinda and her partner Jenny Armstrong won a gold medal. She also competed in the Athens Games in 2004 and the London Games in 2012. Belinda was awarded Australian Female Sailor of the year in 2001 and 2002 and inducted into the Australian Sailing Hall of Fame in 2017. As the WA Institute of Sport head coach of the Sailing Program for 18 years, often coaching with husband Arthur Brett on the waters of Fremantle, Belinda has been inspiring, nurturing and supporting great WA talents including Tessa Parkinson (gold in 2008), Elise Rechichi and Matt Wearn (gold in 2020).
Related exhibitions
Celebrate the 40th anniversary of Australia II making history by winning the America’s Cup; the oldest sporting trophy in the world.
