Charline Picon wins the title of Mariner of the Year 2016!

It had been 12 years since a solo woman had won the title of Sailor of the Year! And it is the young Charline Picon, Olympic medallist in RS:X (windsurfing) who pockets the reward. She succeeds Marie Riou and Billy Besson.

Chloé Torterat Published on December 6, 2016

The Champions Trophy ceremony, which rewards - among others - the sailor of the year, took place on the stage of the Édouard VII theatre on December 4, 2016. There were 4 skippers, one male and one female duo to compete for the title and it is the young windsurfer who will soon be 32 years old who wins the title awarded by the FFVoile.

This is the third time since the creation of the trophy in 2001 that a woman has won the prestigious title. Faustine Merret, also a windsurfer, was awarded in 2004 and Marie Riou (in duet with Billy Besson) in 2015.

Charline Picon, gold medallist at the Rio Olympic Games in 2016, narrowly escaped the title in 2014. She succeeds the four-time world champion duo Billy Besson and Marie Riou (Nacra17). The young sportswoman already has a long and perfect record of achievements to her credit, from her 8th place at the London 2012 Olympic Games: triple European Champion (2013, 2014, 2016), World Champion in 2014, double winner of the Test Event in Rio (2014, 2015) and finally Olympic Champion in Rio this summer. It had been 12 years since a French woman had been crowned Olympic champion in windsurfing (the last one was Faustine Merret in 2004).

The woman who was hesitant to end her career has decided to continue and is aiming for another Olympic medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2020.

" It is an immense honour and still a great emotion to receive this Marin of the Year award. Knowing that my name is going to be listed alongside some of the great French sailors is a great consecration, as the bar is so high to win this award. 2016 is an incredible year for me, the culmination of many years on the water working hard with my coach, of a fast-paced Olympiad, crowned by my gold medal. I would like to thank all the people who have helped me to achieve my dream" explained the young woman.

It was a jury made up of institutional, sports and media representatives, as well as the public (whose vote counted for two votes) who preferred Charline Picon to the other sailors, including François Gabart for his exploits in the multihull Macif, and Jeremie Beyou for his good results in the IMOCA monohull on Maître Coq.

The nominees for Marin of the Year 2016