Antonia and Georgia Lewin-LaFrance, James Juhasz Named Skippers’ Plan Athletes of the Year
Gallagher Skippers’ Plan Athlete of the Year winners, Georgia and Antonia Lewin-LaFrance sailing a 49erFX skiff during Kiel Week
October 8, 2026
The Canadian 49erFX team comprised of Antonia and Georgia Lewin-LaFrance and ILCA 7 sailor James Juhasz have been named Gallagher Skippers’ Plan Athletes of the Year for 2025.
The Gallagher Skippers’ Plan Athletes of the Year Awards are representatives of the long-standing partnership of Gallagher Skippers’ Plan and Sail Canada. These awards are given out annually to two current Canadian Sailing Team members of different gender identities. The selected athletes have shown a record of outstanding achievement in national and international competition and have brought recognition to Canadian competitive sailing, set an example for other competitors through behaviour and manner, and have demonstrated leadership and sportsmanship.
On the women’s side, Antonia and Georgia Lewin-LaFrance were selected as the winners for the first time in their career. After taking part in their first Olympic Games in 2024, the sisters from Nova Scotia won four medals in six competitions over the prescribed time period, notably a gold medal at the 2025 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 European Championships held in Greece. They also won three bronze medals, including one at the French Olympic Week and at the Kiel Week events, which were held as part of the Sailing Grand Slam Series, and another at the 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 World Championships held in Italy. They also took the fourth position at another Sailing Grand Slam Series event, the Long Beach Olympic Classes Regatta.
Their performances in 2025 were truly remarkable. The bronze medal they won at the 49erFX World Championships in early October 2025 was a landmark achievement, as they became the first-ever sailors from Canada to medal at that competition. Furthermore, few teams in Canadian history have had a gold-bronze combo at the European and World Championships in the same year. Their results from 2025 also allowed them to start the following season on top of the World Sailing rankings in the 49erFX class.
James Juhasz: Gallagher Skippers’ Plan Male Athlete of the Year
On the men’s side, James Juhasz from Oakville, ON, was named the Gallagher Skippers’ Plan Male Athlete of the Year for 2025.
Throughout the competitions he took part in over the 2025 season, James Juhasz had a breakthrough performance at the ILCA 7 World Championship with a 37th-place finish, which proved to be the top Canadian result at that event since 2016. Juhasz’s performance allowed Canada to take the 22nd position in country rankings, as compared to 27th place in 2024.
He also coached the ILCA 7 boys at the 2025 U21 World Championships, leading three Canadians to finish in the Gold Fleet (29th, 31st and 42nd as well as 8th in U19).
Off the water, James was elected to sit on Sail Canada’s Board as an athlete representative and he spearheaded the creation of the Canadian Sailing Team Athlete Council, where he has worked to gather athlete feedback, foster high performance training environments, and put the systems in place to help bring Canada to the forefront of Olympic sailing.
