More than 130 yacht photographers from 31 nations have submitted an image for this year's photo competition to find the best sailing photo of 2024. The 20 best images will be exhibited at the Mets trade fair in Amsterdam and the award ceremony will take place on 21 November during the Yacht Racing Forum, the leading annual conference for the sailing and regatta industry.
The five members of the international jury, Carlos Pich (ESP), journalist, Patricia Becker (NED), project manager at the Mets, Andy Rice (UK), sailing journalist and commentator, Soco Nunez de Cela (ESP), chairwoman of The Magenta Project, Shirley Robertson (UK), double Olympic champion and journalist, have selected the 80 best images, which are now online. Their votes will also determine the overall winner of the Yacht Racing Image Award.
Three prizes will be awarded to the winners: the Yacht Racing Image Award (main prize), which is selected by the international jury, the Public Award, which is based on the number of public online votes, and the Delegates Award, which is based on the votes of Mets visitors.
The public vote is open from today until 12 November.
Uncertain future
Until last year, the award was named after its sponsor, the Swiss private bank Mirabaud. The Yacht Racing Image Award is a renowned photo competition specialising in the best yacht sailing photography. It was launched in 2009 and has since developed into an important event in the sailing community.
The competition is aimed at all photographers who are active at sailing events and offers them the opportunity to present their work to a wide audience. The images submitted will be judged by a panel of experts who will assess the quality of the images and the ability of the photographers to capture the dynamics and spirit of sailing.
Following the withdrawal of Mirabaud, the future of the photo competition is uncertain. If no new sponsor is found, the campaign will probably be cancelled.
