Shirley Ann Robertson, OBE DL (born 15 July 1968) is a British sailor and Olympic gold medallist. She is the first

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

woman to win Olympic gold medals at consecutive Olympic Games, Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004.

Early life

Robertson was born in

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, but spent her early life in Menstrie in central

. Robertson began sailing at the age of seven on Loch Ard in Scotland. Her early passion for the sport was nurtured by her family, leading her to compete in local and national events.

Sailing Career

Robertson's first major international breakthrough came in the 1998 World Championships, where she won a silver medal in the Europe class. This set the stage for her Olympic debut at the 1996 Atlanta Games, where she competed in the Europe class, finishing in fourth place.

Olympic Games

Robertson made a significant breakthrough during the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, where she won her first gold medal in the Europe class. This victory marked a significant moment in British sailing history, as it was the first time a British woman had won an Olympic gold in sailing. Four years later, at the Athens 2004 Olympics, Robertson secured her second gold medal, this time in the Yngling class, alongside crew-mates Sarah Webb and Sarah Ayton. This achievement made her the first British woman to win gold medals at two consecutive Olympic Games.

World Championships

Post-Olympic Media Career

From 2006 to 2019 she presenter of ''Mainsail'', a monthly

CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...

program devoted to the sport of sailing. Since 2008 she has been also a commentator for the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

's sailing coverage at the

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, then part of the King ...

, commentating from five Olympic sailing regattas. She also has done a number of events hosting World Sailor of the Year Awards on multiple occasions. Robertson is also part of the commentary team for the prestigious

America's Cup The America's Cup is a sailing competition and the oldest international competition still operating in any sport. America's Cup match races are held between two sailing yachts: one from the yacht club that currently holds the trophy (known ...

, commentating from Auckland, New Zealand and Barcelona, Spain for the 36th and 37th editions of the world's oldest international sporting trophy. Robertson was responsible for appointing one of the seven teenagers to light the

Olympic cauldron The Olympic flame is a symbol used in the Olympic movement. It is also a symbol of continuity between ancient and modern games. The Olympic flame is lit at Olympia, Greece, several months before the Olympic Games. This ceremony starts the Olymp ...

at the opening ceremony of the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. She nominated upcoming youth sailor Callum Airlie. During the games, she became a commentator for the BBC, commentating on the sailing from Weymouth. In 2019, Robertson launched her own podcast series: ''Shirley Robertson's Sailing Podcast'' which sees Robertson sit down for in depth and personal interviews with some of the leading figures from the sport of sailing. In 2023, she became the godmother of MS ''Ambition'', a cruise ship operated by Ambassador Cruise Line. The first stop on the ship's maiden voyage was from Newcastle to Dundee, Robertson's birth place. In 2024 Shirley Robertson took up the roll of General Manager of th
SuperYacht Racing Association
SYRA. Robertson herself has been racing on the superyacht circuit for over a decade.

Honours and recognition

Robertson was named female World Sailor of the Year by

World Sailing World Sailing is the international sports governing body for sailing (sport), sailing; it is recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC). History The creation of the International Yac ...

in 2000, and was appointed an MBE in 2000 followed by an OBE in 2005 for services to Sailing.

Personal life

Shirley married Irish businessman Jamie Boag who she has twins Killian and Annabel with. She now lives with her longterm partner, documentary cameraman Tim Butt in

Cowes Cowes () is an England, English port, seaport town and civil parish on the Isle of Wight. Cowes is located on the west bank of the estuary of the River Medina, facing the smaller town of East Cowes on the east bank. The two towns are linked b ...

, on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight (Help:IPA/English, /waɪt/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''WYTE'') is an island off the south coast of England which, together with its surrounding uninhabited islets and Skerry, skerries, is also a ceremonial county. T ...

References

External links

* * * * * * *
Article on WideWorld Magazine
ISAF World Sailor of the Year (female) 1968 births Scottish people of Irish descent Living people Alumni of Heriot-Watt University Deputy lieutenants of the Isle of Wight Sportspeople from Dundee Scottish female sailors (sport) Scottish Olympic competitors British female sailors (sport) Olympic sailors for Great Britain Sailors at the 1992 Summer Olympics – Europe Sailors at the 1996 Summer Olympics – Europe Sailors at the 2000 Summer Olympics – Europe Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics Sailors at the 2004 Summer Olympics – Yngling Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medallists for Great Britain Olympic medalists in sailing Yngling class sailors Europe class sailors Officers of the Order of the British Empire CNN people Scottish sports broadcasters Long stubs with short prose {{UK-yachtracing-bio-stub