An Inspiring Evening with Melbourne to Osaka Female Duo on Fika
Annette Hesselmans and Sophie Snijders
Tuesday, 11th March, the ORCV along with KISS ALIVE, Melbourne to Osaka Cup and Royal Brighton Yacht Club hosted an unforgettable night celebrating International Women’s Day 2025. The event, featuring the intrepid female mother-daughter sailing duo, Annette and Sophie from Fika, skillfully moderated by Liberator sailor Kate Hyde, drew a packed house of approximately 200 attendees, creating an electrifying atmosphere.
As Fika prepares to set sail again, Annette reflected on her previous Osaka race with a touch of humor and wisdom: "It's a very long way to Japan in a very small boat." Despite the challenges, the duo exudes confidence in their abilities and graciously acknowledged the unwavering support of their partners, Gerry and Simon, who have been instrumental in their preparations and ongoing inspiration.
The evening not only celebrated these remarkable women but also raised over $1,500 to support women in sailing, underlining the event's commitment to #accelerateaction for gender equality in the sport.
Monday 17 March saw four other seasoned female sailors on the start line with Annette and Sophie, Osaka bound amongst 34 co-skippers (18% female), inspiring all women sailors to “be the change we want to see”.
There are some welcome signs of visible change on the horizon around Victorian clubs.
The ORCV has brought the KISS introductory women’s keelboat training under their Training arm with a wait list for 60+ women for the next program. KISS becomes ALIVE in 2025, a strategic platform to connect all Victorian female keelboat sailors through a central hub for collaboration and event promotion so you never miss an event or opportunity to be active, inspired and connected.
By popular demand, July 26 will see the reboot of the ORCV Women Skippers, Navigators & Radio Operators Phillip passage event from Brighton to Queenscliff with both racing and rallying opportunities available.
RBYC caps off the summer PPWCS series with subsidised “BLiSS Experience” training sessions, fast tracking females to lead roles for the May 4 BLiSS regatta finale.
The iconic AWKR all female crew event hosted by RMYS returns June 7-9 with a following from around Australia and beyond. With the goal of its founders 33 years ago to encourage women to get involved in the sport of sailing, it is still very much at the heart of the regatta.
There has never been a better time to get onboard to #accelerateaction!
To keep up to date with all opportunities visit the KISS ALIVE page.To follow the fika crew and others in the 2025 Melbourne to Osaka race, go here https://race.bluewatertracks.com/2025-melbourne-osaka-cup-double-handed-race To watch the full event go to our youtube channel Celebrating International Womens Day with mother & daughter team Annette & Sophie Snijders on Fika - YouTube or click on the video at the top of this page. Follow us on all social media, both facebook and instagram
From left to right: Interviewer Kate Hyde, Annette Hesselmans, Sophie Snijders, Melissa Warren and Lee Renfree. Photo by Stephen Renfree
Thanks to our wonderful ORCV and KISS Alive volunteers for organising the International Women's Day event. Photo by Stephen Renfree
KISS comes ALIVE in 2025
An exciting new chapter for all female keelboat sailors in Victoria is now ALIVE! We welcome you to this central hub, which aims to provide a comprehensive calendar for all female focussed keelboat events for women across Victoria and beyond. Whether training, racing, cruising, volunteering or just chilling, we want to make sure you never miss out on an opportunity to participate. Read more here.
