From Mosman Park to Marseilles.
Australian Sailing proudly chose Zoe Thomson (graduating class of 2015) to compete in the ILCA 6 category at this year’s Paris Olympic Games. The Australian Olympic sailing representatives are part of a 12-person team competing from July 28 to August 8 in Marseilles at this year’s Games.
Zoe’s Story
Zoe began sailing at eight and quickly developed a love for the sport. “My enthusiasm led me to sail in more than one class at the same time from a very young age,” she shared. However, after advancing through the junior classes with the Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club and Fremantle Sailing Club, she specialised in the singlehanded laser radial.
Zoe’s first international success came in 2016 when she won the ILCA Youth World Championships in Ireland. “I’ll always remember my teammates lifting my boat out of the water with me on it, cheering Aussie Aussie Aussie,” she recalled. In 2018, Zoe became the Radial Women’s Australian National Champion during the Laser nationals in Brisbane.
In the subsequent year, she emerged as the top-ranked Australian competitor at the Laser Radial World Championships. She clinched a runner-up position at a World Cup Series Regatta held in Enoshima, Japan, which served as an Olympic trial event. Following her impressive showing at the Australian Laser Radial Championships, she was honoured with the West Australian Female Sailor of the Year title.
After limited international competition due to COVID-19, Zoe re-established herself on the world stage in 2022. She began with an 18th place at the ILCA 6 World Championships and then had a series of top results at the 2022 European Championship, Sail Melbourne (second), and the 2023 European Championships (11th).
“It feels great. It’s been a lot of hard work with the entire squad to start achieving results together. It feels like a validation of all that effort to be on the podium.”
Zoe at the 2024 Olympic Games
These achievements led Zoe to be among the finalists for the Australian Female Sailor of the Year. In early 2024, Zoe put herself in contention for the Paris Olympics when she again won silver at the Palma de Majorca, Spain, a critical event leading up to the Olympic Games.
We are immensely proud of Zoe and all her achievements and celebrate all her success.
