Luke Lawrence (born 24 August 1990) is an American yachtsman and professional sailor who has competed internationally across dinghy and keelboat sailing championships. He has won world championship titles in the Finn, J/24, J/22, and Star classes, and is a medalist at the Youth Sailing World Championships and a winner of the Star Vintage Gold Cup.
Career Lawrence gained early international recognition at the 2008 Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship in Århus, Denmark, where he won the silver medal in the Boys' One Person Dinghy (Laser), finishing second to Pavlos Kontides.
In 2010, he won the Finn Silver Cup, the junior world championship for the Finn class, held in San Francisco.
He later achieved success in keelboat sailing, winning the J/24 World Championship in 2014 as part of the winning crew aboard Cougar, skippered by Will Welles. In 2016, Lawrence won the J/22 World Championship, earning a second keelboat world title.
In the Star class, Lawrence won the inaugural Star Junior World Championship (Under 30) in 2019, sailing with Alexey Selivanov.
In Etchells class competition, Lawrence was part of the team that finished second overall at the 2015 Etchells World Championship in Hong Kong.
He has also recorded podium finishes at continental and regional championships in the Star and Etchells classes, including a silver medal at the Star North American Championship sailing with Ian Coleman and a victory at the Star Western Hemisphere Championship sailing with Paul Cayard.
He is a recipient of the Star Class Gold Laurel Wreath, an honor awarded to the winners of the Star Vintage Gold Cup, which he won in 2025 sailing with Mohammed Asif at Gull Lake, Michigan.
In 2026, Lawrence won the Van Nostrand Cup ice yacht race sailing aboard the Arial with Max Lopez, representing the Hudson River Ice Yacht Club. He is a fourth-generation member of the club; his grandfather, Bob Lawrence, was a boat builder and competitive sailor.
World Championships
Year Event Venue Result Partner Class Ref2026Etchells World ChampionshipSan Diego, United States19th Andrew Macrae Brad BostonEtchells2022Star World ChampionshipMarblehead, Massachusetts, United States14th Andrew MacraeStar 2019 Star Junior World Championship Biscayne Bay, United States 1st Alexey Selivanov Star 2016 J/22 World Championship Kingston, Canada 1st Michael MarshallTodd Hiller J/22 2015 Etchells World Championship Hong Kong 2nd Steve Benjamin Georg Peet Meihan Cheung Etchells 2014 J/24 World Championship Newport, United States 1st Will Welles J/24 2012505 World ChampionshipHamilton Island, Australia 20th Augie Diaz5052010505 World ChampionshipAarhus, Denmark23rd Augie Diaz505 2010 Finn Youth World Championship San Francisco, United States 1st — Finn 2008Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World ChampionshipAarhus, Denmark 2nd—Laser2007Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World ChampionshipKingston, Canada11th—Laser
Star Vintage Gold Cup
Year Event Venue Result Partner Class Ref 2025 Star Vintage Gold Cup Gull Lake, Michigan, United States 1st Mohammed Asif Star 2024Star Vintage Gold CupGull Lake, Michigan, United States5th Mark PincusStar 2023Star Vintage Gold CupGull Lake, Michigan, United States 2nd Joshua PowellStar2019Star Vintage Gold CupGull Lake, Michigan, United States8th Bryan MilneStar
Continental Championships
Year Event Venue Result Partner Class Ref 2015 Etchells North American Championship United States 1st — Etchells 2017 Star North American Championship Marblehead, United States 2nd Ian Coleman Star 2021 Star Western Hemisphere Championship Miami, United States 1st Paul Cayard Star 2025 Etchells North American Championship San Diego, United States 1st — Etchells 2025 Star North American Championship United States 2nd Paul Cayard Star
References
External links Luke Lawrence at World Sailing