The International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF) has announced the finalists for this year’s IMRF Awards, which recognise all those involved in maritime search and rescue (SAR) from around the world.

The judging panel reviewed an incredible number of nominations from all corners of the globe that highlighted some of the amazing work undertaken by the maritime SAR community over the last 12 months.

This year’s IMRF Awards acknowledge those that have shown excellence in their field, developed innovative technology and equipment, or acted as a role model to inspire others. The Awards also shine a light on those colleagues who offer the tireless support, training, and planning that enables SAR crews to do what they do, safe in the knowledge that they are all part of the same team.

The finalists in the IMRF Awards 2022 are:

• Hendrik Jan Anne Spanjer (Maritime Academy Willem Barentsz, Netherlands)
• Rosie Muster (Coastguard New Zealand)
• Captain Isa Noah Amwe (Nigeria)
• Sarah Lundin (Canadian Coastguard)
• Chrissy Heu & Michael Cockburn (Jurien Bay Marine Rescue, Australia)
• Andrew Tate (RNLI, UK)
• John Millman (Canadian Coastguard)
• SOS Mediterranée R/S Ocean Viking SAR Team (France, Italy and Switzerland)
• NSRI Survival Swimming Centre (South Africa)
• Lifboat (Sweden)

IMRF CEO Theresa Crossley said: “I want to thank every individual and organisation who submitted a nomination for this year’s IMRF Awards. Our judging panel have had an incredibly tricky task selecting the finalists from an extraordinary field of candidates, all of whom were worthy of international recognition. This is a testament to the incredible efforts made by the maritime SAR community over the past 12 months, despite the challenges posed by a global pandemic. I am proud that the IMRF is acknowledging these fantastic examples of the very best that our sector has to offer.”

The judging panel for this year’s awards was led by former IMRF Chair Michael Vlasto. Michael was joined by Jared Blows, MRCC Chief at MRCC Cape Town in South Africa; Nigel Clifford, Deputy Director, Safety and Response Systems at Maritime New Zealand; and Julie-Anne Wood, Assistant Director, Policy, Standards & International at the UK Maritime & Coastguard Agency. This year’s awards include five categories: Individual, Team, #WomenInSAR, Innovation & Technology and Lifetime Achievement.

The winners of this year’s awards will be announced at the first part of the IMRF’s European Regional Meeting on 19 October 2022.

The IMRF would also like to extend its thanks to this year’s awards sponsors for their continued support:

Inmarsat, sponsor of The Vladimir Maksimov Award for Lifetime Achievement. Inmarsat is the world leader in global mobile satellite communications and has been providing safety communications at sea since its inception by the International Maritime Organization in 1979 (www.inmarsat.com).

Pole Star, sponsor of the IMRF Award for Innovation and Technology. Pole Star develops pioneering maritime intelligence technologies turning complex data into accessible insight across regulatory conformance, sanctions screening, trade compliance, tracking, monitoring and ship security (www.polestarglobal.com).

HamiltonJet, sponsor of the #WomenInSAR Award. The company’s waterjet and control systems deliver manoeuvrable, reliable and safe prolusion for SAR vessels. HamiltonJet has worked with the maritime SAR sector for many decades, making and developing waterjet propulsion systems which can dramatically increase the range of conditions a SAR boat can operate in (www.hamiltonjet.com).