The late New Zealander Sir Peter Blake has been inducted into the World Sailing Hall of Fame, the highest honour in the sport.
Sir Peter Blake, Wife Pippa and children celebrate winning the Whitbread Yachting race, with Steinlager 2, 1989/90. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Introduced in 2007 to mark the centenary of sailing's world governing body, the ISAF, the organisation said the elite list recognises those individuals who have not only made a significant impact on the water, but also shown incredible dedication and passion to the sport while onshore.
The ISAF said, "No-one fits that description more than Sir Peter Blake. The tough Kiwi is synonymous with the Volvo Ocean Race, having participated not only in the first ever iteration of this round the world marathon, but in a further four editions as skipper, spanning two decades."
Having cut his teeth in offshore sailing as Watch Captain on board Burton Cutter in 1973-74, he stepped up to co-skipper Heaths Condor in 1977-78, and went on to skipper both Ceramco New Zealand and Lion New Zealand in 1981-82 and 1985-86, respectively.
But perhaps his greatest moment in sailing came in the 1989-90 race, when, as skipper of Steinlager 2, he led his crew to a clean sweep of line, handicap and overall honours in each of the six legs.
Joining Sir Peter in the Hall of Fame is Brazil's Torben Grael, a three-time Volvo Ocean Race veteran who won the overall trophy in 2008-09, as skipper of Ericsson 4.
One of his country's greatest sporting exports, Grael also secured five Olympic medals, across two classes, the Louis Vuitton Cup, and numerous World Championships during an illustrious career - leading him to be crowned ISAF World Sailor of the Year in 2009.
This is just the second instance since its inception that the World Sailing Hall of Fame has inducted new individuals. The next occasion will be in 2019.
