News
General Manager - Western Australia Update October 2026
Published Wed 07 Oct 2026
The latest update from Australian Sailing's WA General Manager – Kate Wearn.
Read all previous General Manager updates here.
Welcome to the October update from the Western Australian office, your team of Kate Wearn, Jade Lane and Tait Kunzli.
The winter has been a busy time for all, as we approach the summer sailing season. Instructor, Coach and Officials training has been a focus of the past few months, as Clubs build their capacity leading into summer. Club visits and Discover Sailing Centre reviews increase, as we attend Club Opening Days and support our DSCs in preparing for the summer. In addition, our community engagement events have continued, with Training In Focus – Live and the WA Sailing Awards taking place.
Training In Focus – Live, the Instructor professional development opportunity was delivered at the end of August. We thank all Instructors for their engagement on the day, which ended up being the best attended across the country with 72 people registered. Thank you to our Senior Instructors for supporting the day, along with event hosts Royal Perth Yacht Club.
The WA Sailing Awards were held on Friday 11 September and presented a celebration of the WA Sailing community. The event reached capacity early, with 150 guests joining us to celebrate at Fremantle Sailing Club. We thank everyone who submitted a nomination and supported the Awardsand congratulate our finalists and winners. Please view a summary of all finalists and winners HERE, along with photos from the evening. We eagerly anticipate the pending announcement of the finalists for the National Sailing Awards, with all winners automatically nominated for the Australian Sailing Awards, to be held at the end of October.
At the time of writing, Zhik Youth Sail WA is well-underway, with 162 boats and 170 sailors on the water with our all-star team of 24 coaches. Following the three-day coaching clinic, the WA Youth Championships will take place and conclude on Thursday 1 October. View the highlights on our social media, and all regatta updates and results via the event page.
Coaches were provided with the opportunity to engage in a professional development day, with 30 coaches joining the morning hosted by the WA Institute of Sport. We thank WAIS Coaches Matt Jerwood and Tristan Brown for putting the morning together and delivering timely and relevant knowledge.
Thank you to all our Clubs for your engagement and support. As Opening Day season commences, we enjoy the opportunity to attend your Club’s special day and celebrate the start of a new season.We thoroughly enjoy working with you all and look forward to continuing the great work, as we deliver, grow and promote our sport.
Child Safeguarding
In response to the National Principles for Child Safe Organisations, WA will see new child safeguarding legislation introduced in the next 18-24 months. As part of Australian Sailing's ongoing commitment to ensuring the safety and wellbeing of all children and young people who are involved in our sport, ongoing education and support will be provided to all WA Clubs and DSCs, to ensure ongoing best practice, and compliance with the new legislation. A number of education opportunities have been delivered, please see the resources linked below for reference.
·National Principles for Child Safe Organisations
- Child Safe Self-Assessment Tool
- Australian Sailing – Child Safeguarding Law
- Australian Sailing – Integrity Policies
- Australian Sailing – Integrity Resources
- Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sport
- Sport Integrity Australia
- True Sport
Stay tuned for the announcement of our ‘Child Safeguarding Champions’ Networking Group, to be released soon, which will connect representatives from each Club and DSC, as we navigate these changes and work together.
The local team, along with the wider support of the WA Government remain available and ready to support our affiliated organisations with this important topic.
Discover Sailing Days
A Discover Sailing Day is a great initiative for all clubs to grow participation and membership. Designed to both attract participants to the club on the day, and to send a strong message to the local community throughout the year that clubs are open and ready to welcome new participants.
Discover Sailing Day is FREE for all affiliated sailing clubs and intended to be FREE for participants. All clubs can run a Discover Sailing Day. You do not need to be an accredited Discover Sailing Centre, although that may add some advantages in using qualified instructors and provided accredited learn to sail programs for your participants to register in to continue and grow their new found love for sailing.
A step by step guide has been created, to assist with the planning and delivery of your Discover Sailing Day. Along with marketing templates and social media tiles to assist with the promotion of your event. The WA team are here to support clubs in the planning and executing their own ‘Discover Sailing Day’ event opening their club to the local community to try sailing.
Is your Club interested in becoming a Discover Sailing Centre? There are a range of benefits, and we are here to support you every step of the way. In the past 12 months we have worked with Maylands Yacht Club and then Carnarvon Yacht Club to accredit both as DSCs, with great outcomes seen already. View further information here, or please reach out to a member of the team to discuss this opportunity further.
For all existing DSCs, if we have not already, we look forward to visiting soon to conduct your review and continuing to work together to get more people on the water, in more ways, more often.
WA Local Sporting Stars Volunteer Recognition Program
Volunteers are the heartbeat of any community sporting organisation.
The WA Local Sporting Stars Volunteer Recognition Program (Local Sporting Stars) is shining a light on the selfless contributions of volunteers across our sporting community.
The program recognises a broad range of volunteer contributions including youth leadership, inclusive participation, innovation, long-standing service, and all-round support within clubs and sporting communities.
Local Sporting Stars is all about helping our volunteers to thrive and be recognised. It celebrates the contribution of volunteers in community sport and encourages nominations from across Western Australia.
Every fortnight, 2 volunteers are recognised with a $400 voucher and are considered for the Local Sporting Star of the Year award.
For more information and to nominate your Club's Local Sporting Star, please visit the website HERE.
True Sport Powered by Sport West Employee Assistance Program and Volunteer Assistance Program
True Sport is committed to supporting the mental health and wellbeing of the Western Australian sporting community. The Employee and Volunteer Assistance Program (EAP & VAP) provides free, confidential support to eligible members across Western Australia. All affiliated WA Club members are entitled to this support, via our membership of Sport West.
Please view more information and access the support here.
If your Club is looking for guidance – whether in planning, participation growth, training delivery, governance, or event support – please reach out to our team. We are here to assist and are always happy to discuss how we can best support your Club.
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Kate Wearn |
Jade Lane |
Tail Kunzli |
You can find a full list of Australian Sailing Contacts – here.
