2026 Botany Bay Championship

But he now fully recognises the esteem in which it’s held after piloting MTM Signage to an emotional victory on Saturday.

Combining with St George duo Bryce Edwards and Jerome Watts, Dawson crossed the line 41 seconds ahead of Canberra Airport to claim the 116th running of the 16ft skiff classic.

It's the first winner from host club St George since Nathan Wilmot steered Brydens Lawyers to victory in 2021, triggering great scenes of joy back in the clubhouse.

"There's definitely some pretty well-known names on that shield and I know the two blokes on my boat, being from St George, were really stoked to win it," Dawson said.

"The other St George sailors and all the volunteers and members were so happy for us as well, so it was pretty special."

This was first time lucky for Dawson.

As a Belmont boy, he hadn't previously entered the Botany Bay Championship until starting to sail out of St George this year, competing each Saturday before returning home to race on his home track on Sundays.

"It was aways a race I kind of turned a blind eye to," he admitted.

"Being towards the end of the season and having to come down from Belmont…I guess it wasn't a priority for a long time.

"So this was all new to me."

You wouldn’t have known it by the way Dawson and MTM attacked the race.

Described as the "Melbourne Cup" of 16s skiff racing due to the long, hard slog required to win a race that runs close to two hours while throwing myriad conditions and challenges at the fleet, MTM focused on gaining a good start before settling in for a grind.

The skipper said: "We got the good start we wanted and rounded the first top mark in a good position.

"Once we got into Botany Bay we tried to pick a couple of shifts and managed to get around six or so boats.

"It turned into a bit of a match race with Canberra Airport at the end and they certainly made us work for it but we able to hang on for the win."

Manly's CA (Archie Cropley) settled for second with Middle Harbour's Eric's Storage (Harry Lawson) third.

Handicap winner Rivcon almost didn't make it to the start line after a last-minute scramble to form a crew.

Skipper Jess Rivers' regular sailors weren't available, leaving her to ask around fellow Belmont fleet members for assistance.

Brothers Noah and Thomas Steenson thankfully answered the SOS and Rivcon was able to enter just prior to deadline.

"I was really lucky that Thomas and Noah came down to sail with me because neither of us had crew, so we put a boat together between the three of us," she explained.

"Thomas, in particular, has a lot of experience in that fleet and I learned a lot on Saturday.

"It's a long and tricky race and our goal was to get clear air off the start, follow the locals and stay in the top 15.

"That was an ambitious goal and we weren’t really sure how it was all going to work out."

Amateur mathematicians back at the clubhouse predicted Rivcon had done enough to secure the handicap win, but Rivers only allowed herself to celebrate once the result was confirmed at the presentation ceremony.

A delighted Jess said: "That's the best win of my sailing career.

"To win such an historic event against so many good sailors is hard to top. I'm so grateful for everything Noah and Thomas did to help me."

WORDS | Adam Lucius

IMAGES | Michael Chittenden SailMedia

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