Sarah Lianne Ayton (born 9 April 1980 in

Ashford, Surrey Ashford is a town almost wholly in the Borough of Spelthorne, Surrey, with a small area contained within the boundaries of the London Borough of Hounslow, approximately west-southwest of central London. Its name derives from a crossing point ...

) is an English former professional

sailor A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. The profession of the s ...

. She won a gold medal in the

Yngling The Ynglings were a dynasty of kings, first in Sweden and later in Norway, primarily attested through the poem ''Ynglingatal''. The dynasty also appears as Scylfings (Old Norse ''Skilfingar'') in '' Beowulf''. When ''Beowulf'' and ''Ynglingatal'' ...

sailing class in the 2004 Summer Olympics in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

, together with Shirley Robertson and Sarah Webb, and another gold medal in the Yngling sailing class in the 2008 Summer Olympics in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

, together with Pippa Wilson and Sarah Webb. She retired from competitive sailing in 2011, citing the competing demands of motherhood. In 2015 Ayton was the winner of the Female World Sailor of the Year Awards - "the highest award a sailor can receive in recognition of their outstanding achievements in the world of sailing". Having been appointed a

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(MBE) in the

2005 New Year Honours New Year Honours were granted in the United Kingdom and New Zealand at the start of 2005. Among these in the UK were knighthoods awarded to Mike Tomlinson, the educationalist; Derek Wanless, who led a review of the National Health Service; an ...

, Ayton was promoted to Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the

2009 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2009 were announced on 31 December 2008 in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Cook Islands, Barbados, Grenada, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize, Antigua and Barbuda, and Saint Christopher and Nevis,Saint Christopher. to ...

. She is divorced from windsurfer

Nick Dempsey Nicholas Charles Dempsey (born 13 August 1980 in Norwich) is a British windsurfer, who lives in Poole, Dorset. He became the first man to win three Olympics medals in windsurfing when he won silver in the 2016 Rio Olympics, adding to a silver ...

. Together, they have two sons Thomas-Flynn, who was born on 28 June 2009 and Oscar-Flynn George who was born on 7 March 2012. Sarah married Ashley Harris 12 February 2022 Ayton is a patron of

Meningitis UK Meningitis Now is a national charity based in the United Kingdom. It was formed following a merger between the charities The Meningitis Trust and Meningitis UK in 2013. Meningitis Now is working towards a future where no one in the UK dies from meni ...

. Ayton battled with meningococcal meningitis and septicaemia in 1995, when she was aged 14. In 2015 she visited Bosham sailing club, to present prizes at the racing prizegiving. She retains an active interest in sport, including amateur horse racing.

Footnotes

External links

* 1980 births Living people English female sailors (sport) English Olympic medallists Extreme Sailing Series sailors ISAF World Sailor of the Year (female) Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics Officers of the Order of the British Empire Olympic gold medallists for Great Britain Olympic medalists in sailing Olympic sailors of Great Britain People from Ashford, Surrey Sailors at the 2004 Summer Olympics – Yngling Sailors at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Yngling Yngling class world champions World champions in sailing for Great Britain {{England-yachtracing-bio-stub