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Royal Yachting Association Northern Ireland
RYA Northern Ireland logo
RYA Northern Ireland have launched an OnBoard Development Day which will be hosted by the South Lakes Leisure Centre in Craigavon on Saturday 11 March 2023. OnBoard, RYA’s grassroots programme, is relatively new in Northern Ireland. Its aim is to…
A small yacht with sails furled in blue water with a green headland in the background
Now is your chance to secure a spot at this year’s RYA Northern Ireland Cruising Conference, which will take place on Saturday 28 January at the Royal North of Ireland Yacht Club in Cultra, Co Down on Belfast Lough. The…
Winners at the most recent RYANI Annual Awards for 2019
RYA Northern Ireland has announced the return of its annual awards, including a brand new category, which will recognise the region’s unsung heroes of sailing and boating. The awards, which had been on hold since 2019 due to COVID, are…
The event is set to provide an opportunity for the cruising community to come together, learn about the latest issues and opportunities and hear from experts on a wide range of informative and enjoyable topics. 
The RYA Northern Ireland Cruising Conference will take place on Saturday, 28 January at the Royal North of Ireland Yacht Club on Belfast Lough. The event is set to provide an opportunity for the cruising community to come together, learn…
The first ever father-daughter Olympic gold medal winners, Mike and Eilidh McIntyre
The 2023 RYA Dinghy & Watersports Show on the weekend of 25-26 February is set to showcase a world of on-water possibilities as the first of its guest speakers were unveiled recently. Expert advice and motivation are to be found…
Jack Kennedy
Jack Kennedy from Strangford Lough Yacht Club doesn’t come from a sailing family and is a first-generation sailor. More than 15 years ago he started out on his sailing journey with the club, attending Sunday Sailing, doing his RYA Youth…
A small yacht with sails furled in blue water with a green headland in the background
RYA Northern Ireland is getting ready for its next Cruising Conference, which will be held at Royal North of Ireland Yacht Club in Cultra, Co Down in the New Year. The conference takes place on Saturday 28 January and will…
The British Sailing Squad will act as an apprenticeship to the senior British Sailing Team
The British Sailing Team has launched its new development academy, 'the British Sailing Squad', aimed at developing Olympic stars of the future. The British Sailing Squad will act as an apprenticeship to the senior British Sailing Team, giving talented young…
A newspaper photograph of Waverley Number 7 Lilias competing in Whitehead on Belfast Lough in August 1929
Northern Ireland's Ballyholme Yacht Club and County Antrim Yacht Club have both been announced as finalists in the RYA Club of the Year 2023. Although six miles apart on opposite sides of Belfast Lough, the clubs were formed within about…
RYA Northern Ireland logo
RYA Northern Ireland is calling for anyone who has an interest in boating to take part in an interactive session to help develop the strategy for sailing, boating and windsurfing in Northern Ireland. A high-level summary of the strategy, which…
Debbie Kirkpatrick of East Antrim Boat Club with HRH the Princess Royal
Three Northern Ireland sailors have been awarded RYA Volunteer Awards and recognised by Her Royal Highness the Princess Royal, president of the RYA. The awards, which were held in London, recognise boating's outstanding volunteers and unsung heroes. The Northern Ireland…
Ballyholme Yacht Club
Two Northern Ireland sailing clubs have been chosen as finalists for the Royal Yachting Association’s Club of the Year 2023 award. Ballyholme Yacht Club and County Antrim Yacht Club have both been announced as finalists as well as 10 other…
2022 British Yachting Awards Sailor of the Year, Ellie Driver is just 20 years old. Jim & Ellie Driver raced Sun Fast 3300 Chilli Pepper in IRC Two-Handed throughout the 2022 RORC Season’s Points Championship. Notably, Chilli Pepper won the Morgan Cup overall under IRC and in August Ellie became the youngest-ever skipper to finish the gruelling Sevenstar Round Britain & Ireland Race. Ellie is studying Maritime Engineering at Southampton University and sits on the RORC’s Griffin Committee, which was created in 1945 to encourage sailors into the sport of Offshore Racing
The great and good of UK yachting descended on the Royal Thames Yacht Club on 28 November to celebrate the 2022 British Yachting Awards. The guest speaker was Sara Sutcliffe, Chief Executive of the RYA, who spoke about a more…
RYANI Affiliated Clubs Conference 2022 logo banner
RYA Northern Ireland is giving sailing and boating clubs across the region an opportunity to come together and share knowledge on how best to grow activity, membership and supporting volunteering. The Affiliated Clubs Conference, which will take place on Saturday…
Dun Laoghaire's Saskia Tidey from the Royal Irish Yacht Club sailed for Team GB in Tokyo in 2021 and is campaigning again for Paris 2024
The RYA has released its selection policy for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. As Britain’s national governing body (NGB) for sailing, the RYA works with the British Olympic Association (BOA) to determine the athletes who will represent Team GB at…
Junior sailors standing around a dinghy on a slipway
While the boats start coming out of the water, RYANI says its office is getting into a higher gear with autumn and winter programmes, designed to help planning and preparation for the next season. Following the recent keelboat and sailability…

About the Royal Yachting Association (RYA) Northern Ireland 

  • The RYA is the national body for dinghy, yacht and motor cruising, all forms of sail racing, RIBs and sports boats, windsurfing and personal watercraft and a leading representative for inland waterways cruising.
  • The RYA is recognised by Government, the media and opinion formers as the representative body and voice for the activities that it represents. It continually fights for the rights and freedoms of its 112,000 personal members.
  • The RYA has more than 1,500 affiliated clubs and classes, which represent some 350,000 boaters throughout the UK. It is estimated that 4 million people in the UK take part in boating activity annually.
  • The RYA also sets and maintains recognised standards for training for both leisure and commercial boating through a network of more than 2,400 RYA Recognised Training Centres across 58 countries. More than 250,000 people per year complete RYA training courses.
  • The RYA is responsible for one of the UK’s most successful Olympic medal-winning sports. Our coaching and development schemes actively support 800 of our country’s top sailors, from talented juniors to Olympic and World champions.
  • The RYA is committed to promoting all forms of boating and making them accessible to everyone. For more information please visit www.rya.org.uk.
  • The Royal Yachting Association Northern Ireland (RYA NI) acts for the RYA in Northern Ireland (NI) and the Chairman of RYA NI is invited to join the Irish Sailing Association (ISA) Policy Review Committee.
  • You can find the RYA Northern Ireland at Sketrick House, GE8, Jubilee Road, Newtownards, BT23 4YH.
  • RYA NI is a company limited by guarantee – Registration number NI 51945
  • Contact RYA NI: Tel: 02891 827154 email: [email protected]