Shevaun Bruland has been elected as the first ever woman president for Australian Sailing.
Shevaun has been a member of the Australian Sailing board for five years, serving the last two as Vice President to outgoing President Alistair Murray AM.
Prior to her time on the Australian Sailing board she spent five years on the board of Yachting South Australia, serving the last three years as President.
Shevaun has also been a member of World Sailing’s Equipment Committee since 2020 and a member of World Sailing’s Safety Commission since 2023.
She has raced keelboats and sports boats for many years, enjoying one-design racing, offshore racing and also racing in the kitefoil class since learning to kite several years ago.
“I’m honoured to have been elected President of Australian Sailing and incredibly proud to be the first woman to hold the position,” she said.
“This reflects progress that is being made across the entire organisation and aligns with our strategic aspiration to grow the number and engagement of women and girls participating in our sport.”
In addition to Shevaun, Heather McCallum has been elected to the role of Vice President. Heather was re-elected by the board at the annual general meeting and her election to the role of Vice President will see two women spearhead the organisation.
Heather is a former Rear Commodore of Tasmania’s Derwent Sailing Squadron and chartered accountant and active sailor.
New board members are dual Olympics gold medallist Malcolm Page OAM and Sian Harding were elected.
Sian is one of the youngest ever board members and has implemented programmes and opportunities for women and girls and also the development of instructors and coaches.