DUBLIN (AP) — Olympic champions Ben Ainslie of Britain and Xu Lijia of China have been named world sailors of the year.
Ainslie, a four-time Olympic gold medalist, won the world sailor award for the fourth time, pushing himself comfortably ahead of two-time winners Robert Scheidt and Russell Coutts.
Ainslie, the most successful Olympic sailor of all time, says “It is a huge honor to be part of such a group of exceptional sailors who were put forward for this award.”
Xu, the laser radial gold-medal winner, becomes the second Asian to win the award, following Hong Kong’s Lee Lai Shan in 1996.
