Joanna Ayela Aleh (born 15 May 1986) is a New Zealand sailor. She is a national champion, a former world champion, and an Olympic gold medallist. Aleh competes in the two-woman 470 dinghy, a double-handed

monohull right A monohull is a type of boat having only one hull, unlike multihulled boats which can have two or more individual hulls connected to one another. Fundamental concept Among the earliest hulls were simple logs, but these were generally unstabl ...

planing

dinghy A dinghy is a type of small boat, often carried or towed by a larger vessel for use as a tender. Utility dinghies are usually rowboats or have an outboard motor. Some are rigged for sailing but they differ from sailing dinghies, which ...

with a

centreboard A centreboard or centerboard (US) is a retractable hull appendage which pivots out of a slot in the hull of a sailboat, known as a ''centreboard trunk'' (UK) or ''centerboard case'' (US). The retractability allows the centreboard to be raised to ...

Bermuda rig A Bermuda rig, Bermudian rig, or Marconi rig is a configuration of mast and rigging for a type of sailboat and is the typical configuration for most modern sailboats. This configuration was developed in Bermuda in the 1600s; the term ''Marconi' ...

, centre sheeting and length overall of 4.70 metres.

Early and personal life

Aleh is

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

, and was born in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...

, daughter of

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

i father Shuki Shukrun and

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English ...

-born mother Daniella Aleh, a former

Israeli soldier The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branch ...

. She lives in Auckland where she began a degree in Mechanical Engineering at

University of Auckland , mottoeng = By natural ability and hard work , established = 1883; years ago , endowment = NZD $293 million (31 December 2021) , budget = NZD $1.281 billion (31 December 2021) , chancellor = Cecilia Tarrant , vice_chancellor = Dawn ...

. But then sailing got in the way, and she moved on to

AUT AUT may refer to the following. Locations *Austria (ISO 3166-1 country code) * Agongointo-Zoungoudo Underground Town, Benin *Aktio–Preveza Undersea Tunnel, Greece *Airstrip on Atauro Island, East Timor (IATA airport code) Organizations * Arr ...

to continue her engineering degree, but then found it too hard to fit sailing and university, so she is currently studying a Bachelor of Information Science at

Massey University Massey University ( mi, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa) is a university based in Palmerston North, New Zealand, with significant campuses in Albany and Wellington. Massey University has approximately 30,883 students, 13,796 of whom are extramural o ...

extramurally. Her Israeli name is Kesem Shukrun, and she had a Bat Mitzvah in

Be'er Sheva Beersheba or Beer Sheva, officially Be'er-Sheva ( he, בְּאֵר שֶׁבַע, ''Bəʾēr Ševaʿ'', ; ar, بئر السبع, Biʾr as-Sabʿ, Well of the Oath or Well of the Seven), is the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. ...

. In the

2013 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2013 were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...

, Aleh was appointed a

Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have rend ...

for services to sailing.

Sailing career

Just before her ninth birthday, Aleh was impressed by the New Zealand victory in the 1995

America's Cup The America's Cup, informally known as the Auld Mug, is a trophy awarded in the sport of sailing. It is the oldest international competition still operating in any sport. America's Cup match races are held between two sailing yachts: one ...

, and asked her father if she could learn to sail. She did a learn to sail course at the Ponsonby Cruising Club and with the help of her extended family a small sailing dinghy was purchased. She began her competitive career at the age of 11 in an Optimist. Her first competition event was the

Auckland Anniversary Regatta The first Auckland Anniversary Regatta took place in 1840 and has grown to become one of the largest single day regattas and is the oldest sporting event in New Zealand.Kohimarama Kohimarama is a coastal residential Auckland suburb, located to the east of the city. Kohimarama is situated between Mission Bay and St Heliers and has an accessible beach with a boardwalk and green recreational spaces located amongst residen ...

YC, in 1998. She then made sailing history as the first female to win the Tanner Cup since its inception in 1945. This highly contested interprovincial competition is sailed in

P-class yacht {{disambig In boating, P-class could refer to either of: * a development class for racing yachts under the Universal Rule devised in 1902 by Nathanael Herreshoff for America's Cup The America's Cup, informally known as the Auld Mug, is a ...

s. She won the Auckland Optimist Girls' Championship in 2000, in Kohimarama YC. Her first international competition was the 2002 Cork Regatta, in

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the five most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

, Canada, in the Byte Class, where she won both the Youth and Open divisions, then moved onto the youth classes (under 18) and competed at two

ISAF Youth World Championships The ISAF Youth Sailing World Championships was first held in Sweden in 1971 and it has been held every year since. It is one of the key events of the federation to help promote top-level youth participation. Editions Equipment Gender Guide ...

, finishing with a Silver medal in her final year. Aleh then began the road to Beijing, competing in the Laser Radial class (women's single handed class) with a string of successful results including a World Cup event win, and a Silver medal at the Pre-Olympic Test Event in Qingdao, China. In 2007, she won the

420 420 may refer to: * 420 (number) *420 (cannabis culture), informal reference to cannabis use and celebrations on April 20 **California Senate Bill 420 or the Medical Marijuana Program Act * AD 420, a year in the 5th century of the Julian calendar * ...

World Championships at

Takapuna Takapuna is a suburb located on the North Shore of Auckland, New Zealand. The suburb is situated at the beginning of a south-east-facing peninsula forming the northern side of the Waitematā Harbour. While very small in terms of population, it ...

, sailing with Olivia "Polly" Powrie. She then competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Women's one-person dinghy, coming seventh. Aleh and her sailing partner Olivia ''Polly'' Powrie won a silver medal in the 2010

470 World Championships The 470 World Championships have been held every year since 1970 and organised by the International 470 Class Association and recognized by the International Sailing Federation. When the Championship forms part of the ISAF Sailing World Championship ...

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a list of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's ad ...

, Netherlands, and a bronze medal in the 470 World Championships in the

2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships The 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships was held in Perth, Western Australia, this was the third edition of the ISAF Sailing World Championships. It is the world championships for all disciplines used at the upcoming Olympics. As it used to a ...

Perth Perth is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the Australian states and territories of Australia, state of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth most populous city in Aust ...

, Australia. She and Powrie finished fourth at the Barcelona World Championships in May 2012, won the women's 470 class in the World Cup in Weymouth, England, in June 2012, and are the current New Zealand 470 national champions. In August 2012 she and Powrie won the gold medal in the 470 class at the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a multi ...

Weymouth and Portland Weymouth and Portland was a local government district and borough in Dorset, England. It consisted of the resort of Weymouth and the Isle of Portland, and includes the areas of Wyke Regis, Preston, Melcombe Regis, Upwey, Broadwey, Southi ...

, England. In August 2013, exactly a year after winning their Olympic gold medal, Aleh and Powrie won the world title at the 2013

La Rochelle La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle''; oc, La Rochèla ) is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department. Wit ...

, France. Aleh's highest world rankings have been No. 1 in the Women's Laser Radial (5 March 2008), and No. 1 in the Women's 470 (2013). She now primarily sails a 470 with the Auckland yacht club known as the Takapuna Boating Club. Her coach since 2009 has been

Nathan Handley Nathan Handley (born 17 May 1973) is a New Zealand sailor who competed in the Summer Olympics. He represented New Zealand at the 2000 Summer Olympics he competed in the 49er with Dan Slater, finishing in 8th place. He won the 49er nationals fo ...

. She is a life member of the Kohimarama Yacht Club, Takapuna Boating Club and Yachting New Zealand, and is a current member of the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron. Aleh trialled with '' Team Brunel'' before the 2017–18 Volvo Ocean Race but was not selected and instead joined consultancy firm

Ernst & Young Ernst & Young Global Limited, trade name EY, is a multinational corporation, multinational professional services partnership headquartered in London, England. EY is one of the largest professional services networks in the world. Along with Delo ...

. She updates her blog
The Journey
regularly where she writes about life as an athlete, the transition to 'normal' life and the journey that is life after Olympic campaigning.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Aleh, Jo 1986 births New Zealand Jews Jewish sportspeople Living people Sportspeople from Auckland Sailors at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Laser Radial Sailors at the 2012 Summer Olympics – 470 Sailors at the 2016 Summer Olympics – 470 New Zealand female sailors (sport) University of Auckland alumni Olympic gold medalists for New Zealand in sailing Olympic silver medalists for New Zealand New Zealand people of British descent New Zealand people of Israeli descent Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics ISAF World Sailor of the Year (female) 470 class world champions Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron sailors 420 class world champions World champions in sailing for New Zealand People educated at Westlake Girls High School

Early and personal life

Sailing career

See also

References

External links