Meet Ian Dobson - Head of UK Maritime

At ByrneLooby, we are incredibly proud of our team and celebrate our people's achievements and success in their professional and personal lives. Today our congratulations go to Ian Dobson, our Head of UK Maritime, who has won the GP-14 Sailing World Championship for the sixth time!

Postponed twice due to Covid, the GP14 World Championship hosted last month (August) in Skerries, Ireland, attracted 212 sailors and 106 boats representing five countries in the six-day Skerries event.

Along with his partner Andy Tunnicliffe, Ian has achieved an impressive victory, resulting in his 6th win in this sailing category. We know how he worked hard for this accomplishment, but we were curious to know a little more about Ian, to understand how he has achieved this winning outcome and how it helps him in his role at ByrneLooby- Ayesa.

We are delighted for the opportunity to interview Ian, who talked to us about the win, the training, the challenges, the mental strength, and how anyone can take up the sport.

A combination of physical and mental challenges

During the interview, Ian told us how sailing is considered one of the most challenging sports and how tough the preparation for this type of event is.

Not stopping so early

He gave us some advice on what is necessary for those who wish to start sailing, his plans for future championships,

Sport and Work

He finished by saying how the sport has helped him in his professional life and how it influences his work as a marine engineer. 

"Sport generally allows you to work and manage a team. We are always trying to get little incremental improvements. For example, when working on a campaign, I have to think of long-term goals and strategically make decisions that will stack the odds in my favour. And all of this is useful for business in general."

"The similarities are not lost on me. I got massive benefits of knowing the marine environments, and it is a massive interest to me (marine environment and marine infrastructure) for obvious reason, and that's great for me."

He complemented by giving us his secret for not getting seasick

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"Ginger!"

ByrneLooby-Ayesa is very proud of Ian, and everyone is delighted to see the win. Competing at that level and sustaining it for six years requires excellent mental and physical determination. It's a significant achievement.

WE HOPE YOU CAN MAKE THE SEVENTH! BEST OF LUCK IN 2023 IAN!

Click here to view the full video.