Erin McIlwaine

It all began at Newcastle Yacht Club, now Erin is part of Ireland’s Olympic Development Team

Kilkeel sailor Erin McIlwaine’s partnership with good friend Ellen Barbour only began in March 2024 but the pair have a future dream goal – to qualify for the 2028 LA Olympics.  

The girls have known each other since their early teens, training and competing as part of the RYA Northern Ireland Sailing Academy.

However, both had sailed with different partners and found themselves solo at the same time, hence the fortuitous team-up.

Erin and Ellen compete together in the 49er FX class, a double-handed high-performance sailing dinghy. The 49er is a women’s Olympic class which is designed to suit the weight of an elite female crew.

The two sailors work on different roles. The ‘helm’ makes many tactical decisions as well as steering, with the ‘crew’ doing most of the sail control.  

Erin says, “We each suit our roles very well and have an excellent partnership.”

Sport is in the family DNA. Erin’s mum scuba-dived, whilst her dad rock climbed. Both parents joined Newcastle Yacht Club where Erin’s elder brother Luke learned to sail.

“Our parents went on to buy a family boat and taught me to sail when I was around five, then I began competing age nine,’ explains Erin. ‘I started off on a ‘Mirror’, then moved on to a Topper class dinghy. At 14 I was sailing a 29er and then advanced to a 49er in 2022 when I was 18.”

“Luke, my brother, is just over three years older than me, and we’ve spent our lives sailing together.

“He’s been a great inspiration to me – a role model too. I followed him around the circuit for many years and we sailed a 29er together for three years. That period was a really pivotal moment in the development of my sailing career and Luke really helped me go forward.

“Luke is still heavily involved in the sport. He still races and currently coaches the Norther Ireland Topper squad.”

Erin attended Kilkeel High School and went on to win a sports and academic scholarship to Trinity College Dublin where she is mid-way through a physiotherapy degree.

“Gaining a scholarship allows me to have academic flexibility which is brilliant. As I’m based in Dublin and part of the 49er FX Olympic Development Team, I train at Royal St George Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire. It’s where the Irish Sailing Performance Centre is based.

“Wintertime, we travel to countries such as Portugal, Mallorca and the Canary Islands to train.”

Mary Peters Trust funding is incredibly important to Erin as so much of her training is in Europe, and Trust support enables her to enter international competitions.

“A RIB and van is supplied by the Irish Sailing Association but as competitors we have to organise and pay for transportation for our boat from Dublin, as well as hiring a driver with a trailer licence. At 20 I’m too young to be insured to drive the team van.

“We also need to fund our accommodation whilst training and competing. It’s an expensive business! Support from the Mary Peters Trust is invaluable. I simply wouldn’t be able to undertake half of what I do without Trust funding. It’s just great.”

Erin is currently warming up for the Junior World Championship which take place in Galicia, Spain during July 2024.

“My goal will be to compete in ‘Gold Fleet’ against the top 30% of Under 23 sailors in the world. It will be a huge challenge, but we’re bound to learn a lot.

“My best achievement to date is winning first Female category in the Topper World Championships in China when I was 14 (in 2018). I also gained massive experience last August (2023) competing in my first Tier 1 senior event in The Hague.

“It was the World Championships, and I was sailing against current Olympic medallists. I learned so much and I’m really looking forward to the next Senior World Championships in 2025.”

Team Ireland has won two silvers in Olympic sailing: David Wilkins at Moscow in 1980 and more recently Annalise Murphy at the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Games.  This summer Ireland is sending three boats and four sailors to the Olympics, and Erin knows all four very well.

“I wish Eve McMahon, Finn Lynch, Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove all the very best for Paris 2024. I’ll be following their progress closely.”

Being part of Team Ireland’s Olympic Development Team provides great focus for Erin and Ellen and they certainly have their sights set on Los Angeles 2028, and further down the line to Brisbane 2032.

“I finish my degree in June 2026, then it’s heads down with Olympic preparation in the hope of qualification and selection for LA. That would be wonderful.

“Sailing and sport will always be a big part of my life, and I hope to focus on physiotherapy within a sports setting as a career. I’ve two years to go on my course and several more placements to undertake.

“I really love my course, and Ellen is also studying Physiotherapy in Trinity, which makes time management easier when it comes to studying and training. We can really help each other out with this.

“After graduation the plan is to sail full-time and focus on the LA Olympics in 2028. It’s something Ellen and I both agree on.”