Clubs are the lifeblood of sailing in Australia - introducing members to the sport, fostering passion, and encouraging participation. Three finalists from around Australia have been selected for the Club of the Year category at the 2022 Australian Sailing Awards, with their programs and successes speaking for themselves.

The first of the three finalists is Albert Park Yacht Club (APYC) from Victoria. Celebrating its 150th Anniversary in 2022, APYC is the oldest continuing inland yacht club in Victoria as well as one of the busiest.

The club has always demonstrated an inclusive culture over its 150-year history, leading the way with Sailability programs and female participation in racing.

APYC attracts female members through its inclusive and welcoming culture, and is planning for a significant increase in female participation in both committee representation and volunteering. It is currently working with a group of women of Middle Eastern heritage who are slowly assimilating into the club.

The club has also successfully conducted a ladies training program through the winter. The high retention rate of this program has seen the APSC include a 15-week Mothers and Daughters training program into its schedule.

The club has a strategic relationship with Albert Park College, with 250 students attending the club for sailing, leadership and outdoor education programs every week, becoming the College’s Lakeside Campus.

Albert Park College also runs the largest school-based sailing program in the State, which is being transferred to Albert Park Lake due to their association with APYC.

Newcastle Cruising Yacht Club (NCYC) from New South Wales is the second finalist in the category, having won the national award once before in 2019.

NCYC has a strong passion for fostering young sailors from Tackers all the way through to keelboat sailing. Additionally, a high priority is given to offering them positions on yachts for longer and prestigious races so that they can continue to grow their skills.

The Club has a dedicated SheSails committee who strive to ensure that the women's keelboat course is as fun, informative, and inclusive as possible.

Recently, NCYC became a home base for one of the Making Waves Foundation yachts. The MWF has a strong community of NCYC members and volunteers that assist the disabled community in maintaining a connection to the club and to the wider sailing community.

The club has also introduced a Veteran’s Sailing program in association with ‘Saltwater Veterans’, offering Discover Sailing Experiences and Start Crewing courses to the local veteran community.

NCYC is currently ranked fourth in Discover Sailing Centre nationally and second in NSW for overall participation numbers.

The club’s Women’s Sailing continues to thrive with over 200 women participating in its courses last year.

Additionally, its on-water success in 2022 saw the club’s Squad come away winners of the Interclub Challenge against CYCA, RPAYC and RSYS for the second year in a row.

The Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron prides itself on ‘Participation and Engagement’, focusing on facilitating participation in the sport of sailing and providing more opportunities through which members and guests can become engaged.

Be it through learning to sail, racing, cruising, volunteering, crewing, coaching, instructing or even simply spectating as a start; removing barriers to participation for women, families and youth is a focus of RQYS.

The Queensland club formed a partnership with the Making Waves Foundation providing volunteer support and free berthing for the promotion and provision of sailing experiences to disabled and disadvantaged youth.

RQYS also hosted the annual Women's Keelboat Regatta, and is developing an excellent relationship with over 1000 students from local schools including the Moreton Bay Colleges and Gumdale State School.

This year, the Squadron engaged with Australian Sailing for a pilot program for the development and training of coaches. RQYS also runs a thriving SheSails program with a 62 percent increase in participation from the previous year.

The Squadron’s charitable regattas have also raised over $200,000, having also run 42 Off the Beach races, 13 Division Yacht races, eight State and three National Championships.

Congratulations to all three clubs selected as finalists for the Club of the Year category. The winner will be announced at the 2022 Australian Sailing Awards in Sydney on November 4. For more information on the finalists and awards, please click here.