Sailing is in Tokyo 2020 Olympic gold medalist Matt Wearn’s blood.

“My parents sailed, my older sister sailed,” noted the Perth, Australia native. “I got into it when I was five years old. I also played Aussie Rules Football as a youngster, getting to an age group Grand Final when I was 13, 14 years old. But we lost even though I played well. The individual nature of sailing, where success or failure was on me, appealed to me, so when I was 15, I chose to concentrate on sailing.”

Becoming passionate about the climate crisis and being part of the #ClimateComeback, is a much more recent pursuit. He is excited to join the EcoAthletes Champions network to accelerate his development as a Climate Leader.

“Being an EcoAthletes Champion gives me a chance to learn more about climate change and, even more importantly, how to communicate about it,” Wearn noted. “I found out about the organization at a Western Australia Institute of Sports event in Perth, where I met EcoAthletes Champion and retired netballer Amy Steel. She described how being part of the group could help me become a more powerful climate communicator. I do a lot of public speaking, especially to younger audiences and I believe they are ready to take action on climate. We have a lot of work to do in Australia and I’m looking forward to doing what I can as part of the Champions network.”

That ethic of ‘doing what he can’ as a sailor, along with world class technical coaching from Arthur Brett, propelled him to the top ranks at a young age in sailing-mad Perth.

“I took part in my first proper European competition in single-handed 17-foot dinghy when I was 16 and I got to sail in the 2012 World Senior Championships in Perth when I was 17,” recalled Wearn. “After graduating high school, I made the national senior team right away. I earned a Top 10 finish at the 2014 World Championships in Oman. This meant I’d get government funding so I could concentrate on sailing full-time and make a go of qualifying for the Australian Olympic team for Rio 2016. Unfortunately, while I raced well, I didn’t quite make it, in part because it was close enough between me and one other guy that the judges subjective rankings made the difference, and they went with the more experienced Tom Burton.”

While Wearn was understandably disappointed, he decided that instead of being bitter, he’d get better: “Not getting to go Rio turned out to be the best thing.”

After helping Burton train in Rio — where he won gold (“a bit bittersweet”) — Wearn immediately set his sights on Tokyo 2020. Almost immediately after the closing ceremonies in Brazil, he traveled to Japan to check out the sailing venue and to learn the course. His goal after that was to make qualifying for Tokyo a no-brainer.

Mission accomplished.

“We had qualification races in April-May and September-October 2019,” Wearn shared. “I found out I had made the Olympic team in September.”

Then of course the COVID-19 pandemic forced postponement of Tokyo 2020 to last summer. Wearn took some time off to regroup then, because of travel restrictions, he embarked on a busy schedule of domestic races over 18 months to stay sharp and improve. By the time the Olympic Flame was lit, he was ready to go.

“The restrictions in Tokyo made it easy to focus on the task at hand without distractions,” said Wearn. “We went from the hotel to the venue and back during the week-long, 10-race regatta. I was confident going to it and despite a poor start in the first two races, I was able to regroup and dominated the rest of the event, winning gold with a race to spare!”

Entering his prime as a sailor, Wearn is working hard to see if he can win a second consecutive gold medal at Paris 2024, while also adding a World Championship gold medal to his trophy case. After that, he sees America’s Cup and Sail GP professional sailing in his future.

In the meantime, Wearn is excited to embark on his climate leadership journey, an interest that was sparked five years ago.

“The sailing world launched some environmental initiatives back in 2017, 2018,” he noted. “Beach cleanups, ocean plastic, and more. In 2019, we were in South Florida for a race when Hurricane Dorian hit near Key West. The destruction was immense and the incredible amounts of waste that washed up on shore was powerful to see. This was not normal, and I started a journey to do more.”

He’s sharing that journey with his fiancée, 2-time world champion and fellow Tokyo 2020 Olympic sailor, Emma Plasschaert of Belgium.

“One way we’re looking to do our part is with electric vehicles,” said Wearn. “Emma has a sponsorship deal with Volvo and her new vehicle will be an EV. Both of us rent EVs or hybrids whenever we can. And that’s just transportation. I’m excited to do more to use my platform to make a difference on climate.”

EcoAthletes founder and CEO Lew Blaustein sees Wearn as a powerful #ClimateComeback messenger.

“Matt checks a lot of important boxes as an EcoAthletes Champion,” Blaustein said. “Number one: He’s on the front lines of the climate fight as the world’s oceans have absorbed 90 percent of the excess heat generated by increased greenhouse gas emissions. Two: He’s a relatable messenger since he’s in the early stages of his climate journey, which will be the case with many of his followers. Three: He’s an avid public speaker. And four: As an Olympic gold medalist who’s going for a rare double in 2024, his following will only grow.”

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