GBR Match Race Girls

The GBR Match Race Girls are one of the top International Women’s Match Racing Teams and are determined to represent Great Britain in this exciting new Olympic sailing discipline in 2012. Having gained National, European and World Championship titles, and rapidly risen through the ranks to lead the World Rankings, Lucy Macgregor, Annie Lush and Kate Macgregor are a promising prospect for the future of British Sailing.

Click the photos below find out more about each of the girls…

Lucy Macgregor
(Helm)

Annie Lush
(Middle)

Kate Macgregor
(Bow)

With a wealth of success winning medals and titles within youth sailing, dinghy, keelboat championships and match race events, including the Women’s Match Racing World Championships, the girls are no strangers to Olympic Sailing and are certainly well qualified to undertake this campaign.

Lucy and Annie have now been sailing together since 2005 when they began campaigning together with double Olympic Gold medalist, Shirley Robertson for the 2008 Olympics in the 3 person Yngling class. After narrowly missing out on selection for the team in 2007 the girls focused their attention on other competitive sailing for a year before the decision to replace the Yngling with Match Racing was made. With Shirley racing VX40s, Lucy moved from bow to helming and the girls were searching for a third member to join them in the bow position. Although Ally Martin, a past competitor of Lucy’s in youth sailing, was helming in the 470 Olympic Class at the time, Lucy and Annie were able to convince her to switch to keelboats and match racing. Lucy, Annie and Ally enjoyed a very successful 18 months together before going their separate ways.

In 2010 Lucy’s younger sister Kate joined the team, a role which she has slotted into brilliantly and has already proven to be a great success, winning the World Championships at the end of the year. With a new coach and sponsors, the team are now enjoying working hard together day in day out with the same focus and ultimate goal of a Gold medal on home waters at the Olympics in 2012.

Although the Elliott 6m is the selected class for the new match racing class, there is a strong non-Olympic side to women’s match racing which has been running for many years and from which Annie as a past double World Champion, and Lucy as a past European Champion have learn most of their match racing skills. Most of these event take place in 4-6 person boats but they are still great events for the team to take part in and they are lucky to have a strong group to sailors to join them at these events including both Lucy’s other sister Nicky, Ally Martin, Mary Rook, Jody Slater, Bird Watson, Georgie Blaver-Mann and Jo Ryley to name but a few!