Erica Dawson

EVENT:  Sailing: Mixed Multihull (Nacra 17)

Erica Dawson and Micah Wilkinson have been consistently near the front of the mixed Nacra 17 fleet since their Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020. Dawson showed considerable promise in her junior and youth sailing days and is the only female to have won the Starling National Championships. She earlier campaigned in the 49erFX and had a brief stint in the ILCA 6 (Laser Radial) before teaming up with Wilkinson in 2019. Since then, the duo has broken into the top 10 in the world rankings.

At Paris 2024, Micah Wilkinson and Erica Dawson won New Zealand’s second sailing medal of the Olympics when they secured the bronze in the mixed multihull (Nacra 17).

The New Zealanders entered the double-points medal race with the same number of points as Great Britain, trailing the runaway leaders, Italy and Argentina. 

Things couldn’t have gone better for the New Zealanders when the British team crossed the start line prematurely and failed to return for a legitimate start, resulting in disqualification. In the final race, Argentina finished seventh, and New Zealand eighth. The final points tally was Italy 31, Argentina 55, New Zealand 63, and Great Britain 69. 

Originally a skipper of double-handed boats, Dawson swapped roles with Wilkinson, and the pair finished eighth at the 2023 World Championships and fifth at the 2023 European Championships, capping off a consistent 2023.