Paul Cayard, one of the most successful and respected sailors of his generation, receives the Magnus Olsson Prize 2026, which honours personalities who have shaped sailing at the highest level and given it something lasting beyond sporting success. Cayard's record is exceptionally broad: Olympic campaigns, world championship titles, America's Cup, Whitbread and Volvo Ocean Race, plus leadership roles in teams, classes and associations.
The American stands like no other for a career that cannot be reduced to one boat class, one era or one area. Cayard sailed at the highest level for more than four decades. He was a two-time Olympian, in 1984 and 2004, became world champion eight times and won titles in some of the most demanding areas of the sport.
A world championship title with a 37-year gap
Cayard's record in the Starboat class is particularly remarkable. He won two world championship titles there, with 37 years between them. Such a span is unusual in top-class sport and shows why Cayard is not only considered a successful regatta sailor, but also an exceptional figure in international sailing. For this late triumph, he was also honoured in 2025 as a Rolex Yachtsman of the Year honoured by the World Sailing Federation.
Cayard's youngest Starboat success also carried weight from a German perspective: in 2025, he won the Starboat World Championship in Split together with Frithjof Kleen. At the time, YACHT reported on the duo's title win and Cayard's long quest for another world championship gold in the tradition-steeped class.
The joint triumph with Magnus Olsson
The award takes on a special significance because of Cayard's connection to Magnus "Mange" Olsson. Both knew each other from the world of big ocean races. In 1997/98, Cayard won the Whitbread Round the World Race as skipper of the "EF Language". This made him the first American skipper to win the race around the world. Magnus Olsson was also on board at the time.
For Olsson, this triumph was later one of the greatest sporting successes of his career. The Swede took part in the Whitbread and Volvo Ocean Race six times. His last participation was in 2008/09 as skipper of "Ericsson 3"; he later became involved as a coach and mentor for the women's team SCA.
Cayard now reminisced very personally about his former companion. He had got to know Magnus in the Whitbread and Volvo years of the 1990s and 2000s, sailed with him and against him. Olsson was like a big bottle of "positive attitude" for him, with which you could make everything shine. His personality and enthusiasm were magnetic, said Cayard. Whether on board, in meetings, with heads of state or with children in the Optimist, Magnus was the centre of attention.
Successes in offshore sailing and the America's Cup
Cayard's career extends far beyond the Whitbread victory. He came second in the 2005/06 edition of the Volvo Ocean Race. He has also enjoyed numerous successes in the maxi class, in superyachts and in offshore classics.
Cayard also left his mark on the America's Cup. His role as skipper of the Italian challenger "Il Moro di Venezia", with which he won the Louis Vuitton Cup in 1992, became particularly well known. In doing so, he led the team into the America's Cup match and characterised one of the most striking campaigns of that era.
More than a successful regatta sailor
The Magnus Olsson Award does not only honour sporting results. It honours personalities who embody the spirit, energy and enthusiasm that Magnus Olsson stood for. Cayard is therefore also about his contribution away from the cockpit.
He took on leadership roles in teams, events and international class associations. He also led the U.S. Olympic Sailing Team. Cayard was not only an athlete, but also a mentor, organiser and developer of the sport. His career on and off the water thus fits in with the values that the award seeks to emphasise: excellence, leadership and sportsmanship.
Who has received the Magnus Olsson Prize so far
The Magnus Olsson Prize is one of the most personal honours in international sailing. The official list of award winners begins in 2014 with Torben Grael. Since then, it has included Olympic champions, ocean race winners, America's Cup winners, navigators and offshore greats. Cayard is the 2026 award winner.
- 2026: Paul Cayard
The American won the Whitbread Round the World Race, put his stamp on the America's Cup and became world champion once again in the Star class. - 2025: Charlie Dalin
The French IMOCA star was honoured for his influence on offshore sailing, having won the Vendée Globe in record time, among others. - 2024: Franck Cammas
Cammas stands for exceptional breadth: offshore classics, The Ocean Race, Jules Verne Trophy, Match Racing and America's Cup. - 2023: Simon "SiFi" Fisher
The navigator won The Ocean Race twice and is regarded as one of the defining routing specialists of his generation. - 2022: Pelle Petterson
Swedish sailing and design icon, Olympic medallist in the Star class and a key figure in Olsson's early professional career. - 2021: Martine Grael
Double Olympic champion in the 49erFX, Ocean Race sailor and now the first woman at the helm of a SailGP team. - 2020: Peter Burling
Olympic champion, America's Cup winner and one of the most successful New Zealand sailors in recent history. - 2019: Carolijn Brouwer
Winner of The Ocean Race, three-time Olympian and important figure for mixed crews in ocean sailing. - 2018: Grant Dalton
Ocean Race winner, America's Cup organiser and long-standing head of Emirates Team New Zealand. - 2017: Santiago Lange
The Argentinian won Olympic gold in the Nacra 17 in 2016 and was recognised for his athletic class, resilience and exemplary role. - 2016: Stan Honey
One of the most important deep-sea navigators, Volvo Ocean Race winner and record-breaking sailor. - 2015: Sir Ben Ainslie
Four-time Olympic champion, America's Cup winner with Oracle Team USA and later the driving force behind the British Cup dream. - 2014: Torben Grael
Five Olympic medals, Volvo Ocean Race victory with "Ericsson 4" and Louis Vuitton Cup success with Luna Rossa.
A prize in the name of "Mange" Olsson
The prize bears the name of Magnus "Mange" Olsson, one of Sweden's most influential offshore sailors. Olsson was born in 1949, learnt to sail on the Mälaren as a child and developed from a dinghy and 505 sailor into a central figure in international offshore sport. Pelle Petterson brought him into the America's Cup campaign "Sverige" in the mid-1970s. This marked the beginning of Olsson's path into professional sailing.
Olsson died on Lanzarote on 20 April 2013. The memorial fund was founded in May 2013. It is intended to support young Swedish sailors and sailing activities, including through scholarships for individuals and organisations.
The foundation describes its purpose as supporting young Swedish sailors who, like Magnus Olsson, are optimistically working towards success in sailing. According to the foundation, more than 20 young sailors have already received scholarships.
Award ceremony in Stockholm
The award ceremony for Paul Cayard will take place on 9 June 2026 at 5.30 pm at the Nya Djurgårdsvarvet in Stockholm. There, Cayard will join the ranks of award winners who have shaped international sailing over the years and in some cases decades.
Lars Bolle
Chief Editor Digital
