Sportsboat World announces appointment of new Director, Simon Russell

by Sportsboat World 29 Aug 2018 07:38 BST

Southampton, UK: Tony Castro, CEO of Sportsboat World, has announced the appointment of a new Director, Simon Russell, who joins Sportsboat World to lead the manufacturer and worldwide distributor of the SB20, the award winning sportsboat, into a new phase of growth and to further support the SB20 community around the world.

Simon Russell has over 25 years of experience in the marine business and his move to Sportsboat World comes after 11 years as Corporate Sales Manager at sailing apparel brand, MUSTO, where he focused on growing the team sales business. Before that, Simon spent ten years at Jack Holt Ltd as a Technical Sales Manager in the dinghy and keelboat hardware division.

Well known around the British marine world as "Fumesy", Simon is also an accomplished sailor having won several National, European and World championships in some of the most competitive classes in the sport.

The SB20 continues to be a vibrant and popular class with over 750 boats afloat and we thank Jerry Hill and Alan Hillman for their contribution over the last 6 years, and wish them well in their future endeavours.

Tony Castro, Chief Executive Officer of Sportsboat World said "The knowledge, expertise and experience that Simon brings to our company will further strengthen the position of the SB20 as the leading strict one-design 6-metre racing keelboat.

Simon understands what the SB20 stands for, where we are and where we want to be in this sport. He is fully committed to working with our international network of stakeholders: the SB20 Class, the World Council, owners and fans, to get the SB20 to the next stage while preserving the ethos of this unique class."

Simon Russell, Director of Sportsboat World said "I have worked for over 25 years in the marine industry with this being my most exciting challenge to date. It's a privilege to work with Tony and everyone involved in the SB20 class and I'm very keen to make the SB20 even more popular than it already is."