Olympic sailor Micky Beckett raffles boat to raise £18k

Mr Beckett, who represented Team GB in the men's dinghy class at the Paris 2024 Olympics and is from Solva in Pembrokeshire, raffled the boat he raced at the event.

Tickets for the £8,700 ILCA 7 dinghy were sold at £10 each, giving many people the chance to win, regardless of whether they were sailors.

All the proceeds, totalling £18,053, will be donated to the Andrew Simpson Foundation, a charity set up in memory of British Olympian Andrew ‘Bart’ Simpson who died in 2013.

Mr Beckett said: "It's no secret that for athletes the time straight after the Olympics is a bit weird and can be a struggle, so doing this raffle has really helped me keep busy and made me feel like I'm making a difference.

"I swapped going to the gym for trying to sell tickets for £10 and I've really enjoyed how much everyone has engaged with it.

Micky Beckett with the boat he raced during the Paris Olympics (Image: British Sailing Team) "I know people who barely sail yet were excited to buy a ticket. We've managed to raise £18,000 for an incredible charity, which is something I'm really proud of.

"Raising money for the foundation has always been something I've wanted to do.

"Given the foundation was set up in Bart's name, and his huge Olympic success, it seems fitting to try and maintain that link between the foundation and the Olympics by raising money with the boat I used this summer."

Also included in the raffle was the sail Mr Beckett used at the Games, still with its Olympic branding.

Mark McKee from Northern Ireland won the boat, while Rob Hunt from Gloucester won the sail.

Mr Beckett personally called the winners to inform them of their success and will deliver the prizes in person later this month.

The raffle was supported by Ovington Boats, who donated the ILCA 7, and Tideway Wealth.

Mr Beckett said: "We've just announced the winners, who I'll be delivering the boat and sail to in a few weeks.

"The boat is quite special; it looks stunning with the Olympic rings still on it.

"The gentleman who won it will hopefully use it regularly and have a great story about how he came to own the boat, which might even inspire a few people to get into sailing."

The Andrew Simpson Foundation provides opportunities for young people to experience sailing from its centres in Portland, Reading, Portsmouth and Birmingham.

The charity said the money raised by Mr Beckett will enable more than 500 young people to experience sailing, many for the first time.

Caroline Slocock, the Andrew Simpson Foundation’s fundraising manager, said: "We'd like to extend a massive thank you to Micky for coming up with this fantastic initiative, alongside the contributing partners Ovington Boats, Tideway, and the British Sailing Team who helped make it a great success.

"Athletes like Micky are great inspirations for the young people we welcome onto the water, and the money raised could even be an introduction to sailing for future Olympic stars."