As part of their 30 Years of Olympic ILCA Sailing series, ILCA have been speaking with sailors who competed in the class’s Olympic debut and reflecting on what that experience means three decades on.
Their interview with Michael Blackburn is Here.
For Michael Blackburn, Atlanta 1996 was the start of an Olympic journey that would leave a lasting mark on the ILCA class.
Competing in the Laser class, Michael finished an impressive 4th at his first Olympic Games before going on to win bronze at Sydney 2000 and claim the 2006 ILCA Laser World Championship title.
His influence extended well beyond his own racing career. As a coach with the Australian Sailing Team, Michael helped guide a new generation of champions, including Olympic gold medallists Tom Slingsby (London 2012), Tom Burton (Rio 2016), and Matt Wearn (Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024).
Through both his sailing and coaching achievements, Michael has played a major role in one of the most successful periods in ILCA Olympic history.
Michael’s current role is as Technical Director of Australian Sailing’s High Performance Program where he leads the national coaching group, providing strategic direction, on-water training and competition plans for the program’s elite sailors.
ILCA World Council has established a Finance and Governance Sub-committee (FGC) to provide oversight in key areas of finance, audit, governance, ethics and risk management.
