Team Lavery Stewart Going for Gold – 470 Olympic Campaign

We are looking for support in our Olympic Campaign. Flora Stewart (the crew) grew up in Edinburgh and was introduced to sailing aged 12 off the Solway coast of Scotland. Jess Lavery (the helm) grew up and started sailing in Emsworth on the south coast of England aged 5. Together we are members of the British Sailing Team and first started competing together in June 2016.

We sail the International 470, one of the most widely sailed high performance boats in the world, giving our events a wide national and international appeal. The class has been raced at the Olympics since 1976 and was the first to offer women a chance to compete in 1988. Requiring a high degree of communication and teamwork, success is dependent on tactical intelligence, finely tuned equipment and of course physical strength.

We campaign full time, against the best female sailors in the world (including Olympic and World Champions) and our results have seen a steady improvement since the formation of our partnership two years ago. We are currently on track to achieve our goals but require financial assistance to help us make the next step.

We are currently trying to raise funds to cover a second boat, and also a trip to Japan at the end of August, start of September. As the next Olympics are in Tokyo it means we require a two-boat campaign so that we can continue to compete at the European events while also taking part in regattas and training camps in Japan, at the Olympic venue. These camps and events in Japan form a vital part of the build up to Tokyo 2020 as it allows us to experience the Olympic waters and gain an understanding of the local conditions and experience the Japanese culture.

Our Olympic journey so far has been tough, we have overcome injury and illness and continue to battle with the elements on the water on a daily basis. If you could support us in any way possible it would be fantastic. Your support would make a huge difference to our campaign. We both have a passion for sailing and racing and alongside our own Olympic ambitions we hope to inspire and encourage people to get involved in sailing.