HILARY LISTER TRIBUTE at Oxford
Published 1:00am on 26 May 2019
Club member and National RYA Sailability Award winner Gary Lowe joined international yachtswoman Dee Caffari MBE this week in presenting a tribute to quadriplegic sailor Hilary Lister at Jesus College Oxford, who sadly died in 2018. Hilary was an inspirational disabled sailor who's single handed feats included crossing the English Channel and a circumnavigation of Britain, using only 'sip and puff' sailing controls in her boat. The International Sailing Federation (ISAF) judged the round-Britain success to put her in the top four sailors in the world.
Gary met with Hilary in 2010 and enabled her to work with Staffordshire University in order to further develop the 'sip and puff' control system.
In his tribute Gary recalled cases from his own experience where Hilary had inspired thousands of people with a disability to engage in sailing. Gary also attributed Hilary's inspirational personality to his own enthusiasm for enabling people with a disability to sail.
For more information on sailing with a disability, or to contact Gary, please Contact Us. Alternatively, visit the RYA Sailability website.