Submit your nominations for US Sailing 2018 Rolex Yachtsman, Yachtswoman of the Year

Rolex Yachtsman, Yachtswoman of the Year award © US Sailing

Every major sports organization has their own historic, iconic award to properly recognize excellence. College football recognizes the most outstanding player of the year with the Heisman Trophy. Major League Baseball honors their best pitchers of the season with the Cy Young Award. The National Hockey League celebrates their Most Valuable Player with the Hart Trophy. US Sailing has the Rolex Yachtsman and Yachtswoman of the Year, widely acknowledged as the foremost individual sailing honors in the nation. US Sailing is now accepting nominations for these prestigious awards through December 2018. Submit your nomination(s) today at rolex.ussailing.org.

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 recognize the individual male and female U.S. sailors who have demonstrated on-the-water excellence at international and/or national events to earn their place in the history of the sport.

The nomination period is open to the public. Fans can nominate male and female sailors who they believe turned in the most outstanding on-the-water performances during the 2018 calendar year.

Do you know of an American sailor who performed extraordinarily well at the highest levels of competition in 2018? Your nomination(s) may ensure a deserving sailor will receive the proper recognition by making the shortlist or even winning one of these prestigious sailing awards.

In January, a shortlist of nominees for each award will be presented to a panel of sailing media journalists who will discuss the merits of each finalist and vote by secret ballot to determine the winners. To further engage with sailing communities around the country and to leverage the expertise of previous award recipients, past Rolex Yachtsman and Yachtswoman of the Year award winners will also be given an opportunity to vote and rank their top selections.

The winners will be announced in February prior to the luncheon at the St. Francis Yacht Club in San Francisco (date to be determined), where the award finalists will be honored and the winners will be presented with US Sailing's Rolex Yachtsman and Yachtswoman of the Year award and specially engraved Rolex timepieces.

In 2017, J/70 World Champion Peter Duncan (Rye, N.Y.) and Enoshima Olympic Week Laser Radial Gold Medalist Erika Reineke (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) were selected as Rolex Yachtsman and Yachtswoman of the Year for their remarkable sailing performances. Reineke and Duncan were first time winners of the awards.

Previous recipients who have earned the honor multiple times include, Ed Adams, Betsy Alison, Sally Barkow, Dave Curtis, Dennis Conner, JJ Fetter, Terry Hutchinson, Allison Jolly, John Kostecki, Buddy Melges, Lowell North, Jan O'Malley, Jane Pegel, Ken Read, Cory Sertl, Lynne Shore, Jody Starck, Anna Tunnicliffe, and Ted Turner.

Awards criteria

• Awards recognize the individual male and female U.S. sailor who has demonstrated on-the-water excellence in the calendar year. In the past, there have been outstanding situations resulting in a skipper and crew nomination being accepted (Olympic years).

• Must be eligible to represent the USA under World Sailing regulations, and actually representing the USA at the event(s) for which the nominee is being considered for the award.

• Must have won a major international or national event and/or performed at a high level consistently in multiple events against elite competition.

• There is no minimum age required to win the award.

• The awards are not based on career racing results (lifetime achievements) or philanthropic contributions to the sport.