__NOTOC__ Hilary Claire Lister (3 March 1972 – 18 August 2018) was an English record-breaking quadriplegic

sailor A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. The profession of the s ...

. She had the progressive condition

reflex sympathetic dystrophy In biology, a reflex, or reflex action, is an involuntary, unplanned sequence or action and nearly instantaneous response to a stimulus. Reflexes are found with varying levels of complexity in organisms with a nervous system. A reflex occurs ...

and controlled her ship by using

sip-and-puff Sip-and-puff or sip 'n' puff (SNP) is assistive technology used to send signals to a device using air pressure by "sipping" (inhaling) or "puffing" (exhaling) on a straw, tube or "wand." It is primarily used by people who do not have the use o ...

technology for steering and sails. Lister was born in Hook in

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

, as the third of four children born to

biochemist Biochemists are scientists who are trained in biochemistry. They study chemical processes and chemical transformations in living organisms. Biochemists study DNA, proteins and Cell (biology), cell parts. The word "biochemist" is a portmanteau of ...

mother Pauline and

vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

father Colin. Lister was able-bodied until the age of 15. She studied

biochemistry Biochemistry or biological chemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology and ...

Jesus College, Oxford Jesus College (in full: Jesus College in the University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeth's Foundation) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship St ...

, between 1991 and 1995, having lost the use of her legs by then. She started a PhD at the

University of Kent , motto_lang = , mottoeng = Literal translation: 'Whom to serve is to reign'(Book of Common Prayer translation: 'whose service is perfect freedom')Graham Martin, ''From Vision to Reality: the Making of the University of Kent at Canterbury'' ...

in 1996 but her condition deteriorated. She lost the use of her arms in 1999 and was unable to finish her doctorate, but was awarded an honorary doctorate by the university. She was introduced to sailing in 2003, which she commented gave her back her sense of freedom and "quite literally" saved her life. Lister married music teacher Clifford in 1999, though they later separated. On 23 August 2005, Lister was the first quadriplegic to sail solo across the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...

(in 6 hours and 13 minutes). On 24 July 2007, she became the first female quadriplegic to sail solo around the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...

(in 11 hours 4 minutes). She won the

Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

Helen Rollason Award for Inspiration in 2005. She set off to sail solo around

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

on 16 June 2008. Bad weather and technical problems forced her to suspend the attempt on 13 August 2008. On 21 May 2009, Hilary Lister resumed her attempt from

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

. By 14 August she had reached Bridlington, Yorkshire on the east coast. She reached the end of her journey, Dover in Kent, on the evening of 31 August 2009, becoming the first disabled woman to sail solo around Britain. Lister had to be resuscitated six times during her circumnavigation of Britain. On 8 January 2010, at the

Tullett Prebon TP ICAP Group plc is a financial services firm headquartered in London, United Kingdom. Its stock is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. History The company was founded by Derek Tullett in 1971 as a ...

London International Boat Show, Lister announced her intention to compete in the 2011 Fastnet Race in a Class 40 boat. In April 2010, Hilary sailed around the Kingdom of Bahrain in support of Bahrain Mobility International. Lister died on 18 August 2018. She was 46.

Awards

* Winner of The Royal Cruising Club's Seamanship Award, 2005 * Winner of A Woman of the Year 2005–2006 — Women of the Year Charity * Winner of Woman of the Year 2006 — ''New Woman Magazine'' * Winner of the Helen Rollason Award for Inspiration —

Sportswomen of the Year 2007 * Winner of the

Cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Food and drink * Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo" History * Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953 Hotels and resorts * Cosmopoli ...

Superhero Award — Cosmopolitan Fun & Fearless Women * Winner of Breast cancer Breakthrough Aspirational non-celebrity, 2009 * Winner of the Vitalise "Woman of Achievement" Award, 2009 * Winner of the SJA Bill McGowan Award, 2009

Other recognition

* Made a UK Sailing Academy Ambassador 2006 * Awarded an honorary PhD by the

University of Kent at Canterbury A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

2007 * Hilary is patron of Mariners of Bewl and the Active Ashford Bursary.Bursary

Active Ashford
, UK. *

Kent County Council Kent County Council is a county council that governs most of the county of Kent in England. It is the upper tier of elected local government, below which are 12 district councils, and around 300 town and parish councils. The county council h ...

Invicta Award, April 2010

References

External links

Hilary Lister websiteBBC news report of cross-channel sailThe Guardian interviewArticle
in ''

Oxford Today ''Oxford Today: The University Magazine'' was a magazine for the alumni of Oxford University.Contact details

''
(page 7) article by Lister in the Jesus College alumni newsletterCNN reportSunday Times award / profileUniversity of KentUniversity of KentInternational Association for Disabled Sailing's report on Lister's Isle of Wight sail
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lister, Hilary 1972 births 2018 deaths People from Hart District Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford Alumni of the University of Kent Single-handed sailors English sailors English disabled sportspeople People with tetraplegia