The earliest video recordings of women in sailing
by Magnus Smith 13 Oct 04:00 PDT
In 1976, Clare Francis participated in the Observer Singlehanded Transatlantic race with her Ohlson 38 yacht, setting a new women’s single-handed transatlantic record while wearing Henri-Lloyd © Henri-Lloyd
As the inaugural Puig Women’s America’s Cup just concluded in Barcelona, it seemed fitting to explore the video archives this week focusing on women in sailing. Our persistent aim is to uncover the oldest footage, which raised some troubling questions given the historical context. There are sailing videos dating back to the 1920s… but considering the limited rights women had back then, what problematic representations might we encounter?
The earliest video we discovered is “Sea Guides,” dating from 1926 in England. The inclusion of girls sailing and rowing might have been novel for a newsreel of that time, yet it offers a representation worth celebrating.
We also found “The Girl On The Yacht” and “The Girls Of The Yacht Brigade” from the 1930s. Moreover, records from the 1940s note mixed-gender youth sailing, such as the Snowbird racing in Newport Bay, California.
In 1968, Barbara Caulder led an all-female crew from Aberdeen, Scotland, in a race across the North Sea. The video captures some preparations before the race, possibly documenting the testing of an emergency tiller.
Barbara’s obituary provides intriguing insights.
From an unspecified year in the 1970s, there’s footage of GP14 sailing at Lymington Town Sailing Club, highlighting numerous female sailors. While watching people remove boat covers may not be thrilling, I’m glad the footage was captured on land since the shots on the water are too distant to identify anyone’s gender. Many racing dinghy classes today still showcase a delightful mix of genders.
In 1977, Clare Francis became the first woman to captain a boat in the Whitbread Round the World Race, although the Official Film barely acknowledges her yacht. We will skip that video with discontent and instead feature interviews prior to the start, spotlighting Clare at 2m47s.
Tracy Edwards surpassed this achievement in the 1989/90 Whitbread, achieving a 100% female crew. “The Maiden Voyage” is a 52-minute documentary about the race. As an observer, I may not completely assess whether this appropriately portrays the women, but I hope it reflects their extraordinary yet ordinary capabilities—there should be no surprise that women can sail as proficiently as men.
Returning to the America’s Cup, it’s reassuring to note that the 2024 event marks not the first involvement of female sailors. Historical records document several women who competed against men, prompting us to seek any footage of Dawn Riley.
A brief clip of the America3 women’s team in action from 1992 is available, but let’s focus on America’s Cup 1995 (part 2), which features the all-women’s “Mighty Mary” team at 15m30s, leading Dennis Conner’s team by a margin of four minutes during the Defender Trials. I would have loved to see them win overall, although that victory didn’t occur on that occasion.
We’ll conclude here, as everything shifted to digital formats in the 1990s. If you know of any videos—old or new—that we’ve overlooked, please submit links for prompt review. If you have thoughts on the past or future of women’s sailing, feel free to reach out via email.
It’s truly wonderful that our sport allows men and women, young and old, including those with physical or mental disabilities, to enjoy being on the water while often finding a fair competitive environment as well.
