US Sailing's Youth racing newsletter is your source for updates on the national effort to support youth racing, regatta and clinic participation, performance education and the Olympic Development Program (ODP).

Contents:

• 2018 U.S. Youth Worlds Team Qualification System Announced
• VSR Coachboat Opportunity for US Junior Programs
• Junior Olympic Festivals Highlight Fun Racing Opportunities
• Youth Champs Early Acceptance Events Set to Begin
• ODP: Raising The Level
• ODP: Recent Results and Camps
• 2018 Youth Class Worlds Coming to U.S. Shores
• Sign Up for the National Coaching Symposium
• Apply to be a US Sailing Instructor Trainer
• SafeSport Webinars Available

2018 U.S. Youth Worlds Team Qualification System Announced

US Sailing has released details of the athlete selection system for the 2018 Youth Sailing World Championship (July 14‐21, 2018), which will be held in home waters at Corpus Christi, Texas. In seven of the nine classes, the selection process will consist of two well-established domestic youth regattas.

“We have been happy with the two-event system, which has been proven successful both for selecting the best sailors for the Youth Worlds and for fostering strong competition here at home,” said Leandro Spina (Miami, Fla.) US Sailing’s Olympic Development Director. “Using existing class racing events for our Youth Worlds qualifiers is beneficial to many important groups in U.S. youth sailing. It helps improve the health of key skill-building youth classes, and allows us to have a logical, non-disruptive and class-by-class approach to selecting our team.

The Olympic Development Program (ODP), which manages the Youth Worlds Team, wants to keep working closely with athletes, parents, regatta managers, regional racing teams and class associations to build a stronger youth racing pipeline for high-performance sailing. As the world’s premier junior regatta, the Youth Worlds is a big focus for us.”

VSR Opportunity: Boost the 2018 Youth Worlds, Boost Your Own Junior Program

Junior Olympic Festivals Highlight Fun Racing Opportunities

Upcoming USA Junior Olympic Sailing Festivals:

• October 7-8: Macatawa Bay Yacht Club, Holland MI
• October 20-22: Edison Sailing Center, Fort Myers FL
• December 9-10: US Sailing Center Martin County, Jensen Beach FL
• December 27-30: Orange Bowl International Youth Regatta, Miami FL

Join or renew your US Sailing membership and create an account with Regatta Toolbox to insure smooth registration!

Upcoming: 2018 Youth Champs Early Acceptance Events

Regattas:

• I-420 Atlantic Coast Championship, Sept 30- Oct 1, Greenwich CT
• Nacra15 North Americans, November 18-20, Miami, FL

2018 U.S. Youth Championship

• Venue: Carolina Yacht Club, Wrightsville Beach, NC (June 23-27, 2018)
• Classes: Laser, Radial, Nacra 15, I420, 29er, Techno 293 Plus

Raising the Level: US Sailing’s ODP In Action

By Belle Strachan. Photos by Ryan Schack.

(LONG BEACH, CALIF.) A new wave of young US talent is hitting the water, and ready to go up against the best in the world.

The 2017 29er World Championship, hosted by Alamitos Bay Yacht Club in Long Beach, Calif., brought together 129 teams from sixteen different countries. As an event historically held outside of the United States, this year offered young American sailors the opportunity to take advantage of racing at one of the highest levels of competition – and take advantage they did: forty-nine teams represented the United States, compared to the seven who competed at the 2016 Worlds in the Netherlands.

For class World Championship events, US Sailing’s Olympic Development Program (ODP) typically develops a travel team with a specific roster of qualified sailors, and that group trains, travels and improves as a unit. Hosting the regatta in the States, however, presented the unique chance for the ODP to not only help more US sailors, but to deploy coaches and tools necessary to boost all American competitors regardless of their experience in the boat.

Notable ODP Summer Results

"We are competitive as a country, but are still improving in many areas. It's good to see more U.S. sailors in the top at major events. We are constantly improving the program and focusing on areas that need attention." - Leandro Spina, Olympic Development Director, US Sailing

Below are some notable 2017 results from junior athletes who have participated in ODP camps, and continue to be guided by world-class ODP coaches in collaboration with other top sailing organizations and youth teams from around the country.

Laser Radial Youth Worlds

• Charlotte Rose 3th
• Hallie Schiffman 13th
• Lillian Myers 20th

29er Nationals (international fleet, 126 teams)

• Allie Toppa/Jacob Rosenberg 2nd
• Neil Marcellini/Ian Brill 8th
• David Eastwood/Sam Merson 10th
• Lucas Pierce/Wells Drayton 11th
• Bella Casaretto/Ian McDiarmid 12th

29er Worlds

• Allie Toppa/Jacob Rosenberg 7th Overall
• Neil Marcellini/Ian Brill 10th Overall
• Catharine Lindsey/Jana Laurendeau 4th (girls division)
• Talia Toland/Cate Mollerus 6th (girls division)

49er Junior Worlds

• Dane Wilson/Scott Ewin 2nd overall
• Romain Screve/Quinn Wilson 6th Overall

Laser U21 Worlds

• Henry Marshall: 10th Overall and 1st Place U19 Division
• Ford McCann 3rd (U19)
• Marshall McCann 5th (U19)

Radial U21 Worlds

• Christina Sakellaris 14th
• Carly Brussard 16th
• Sophia Reineke 20th

RSX Youth Worlds

• Geronimo Nores 10th Overall

Windsurf T293+ Worlds

• Manuel Nores 12th Overall

420 Europeans

• Emma Kaneti/Ciara Rodriguez 3rd Girls Division
• Carmen Cowles/Emma Cowles 11th
• Michelle Lahrkamp/Gabriella del Bello 13th
• Dylan Ascencios/Nick Chisari 14th Boys Division

420 Jr Europeans

• Dylan Ascencios/Nick Chisari 2nd Overall
• Carmen Cowles/Emma Cowles 4th Girls Division
• Emma Kaneti/Ciara Rodriguez 7th Girls Division

ODP Heavy Weather Camp Challenges Youth Worlds Team and Others In San Francisco

This past Labor Day, over 40 youth sailors participated in the ODP Heavy Weather Training Camp, hosted by St. Francis Yacht Club, with support from Quantum Racing, the St. Francis Sailing Foundation and the Belvedere Cove Foundation. The camp was the first of three training sessions being held this fall to prep the 2017 U.S. Youth Worlds Team for the upcoming worlds in Sanya, China in December.

The camp was also the first of a new regional format for certain ODP camps. Under the new system, local sailors are invited along with their coach to train alongside other ODP sailors and Olympic-level coaches.

After a slight wind delay on day one, days two and three followed with the typically strong San Francisco breeze. Sailors received great value as they put their heavy weather skills and tactics to use while training with world-class coaches including Quantum Racing's Grant Spanhake, Olympian Kevin Hall, Olympic medalist Caleb Paine , Olympian and yacht designer Pete Melvin , US Sailing Team member David Liebenberg and Youth Worlds veteran and skiff coach Dane Wilson.

The next ODP Youth World Team Prep camps will take place in Miami, Florida and will focus on speed training and racing tactics.

"Regional racing teams and coaches that are interested in participating in the November ODP camp in Florida should contact us at odp@ussailing.org." - Meredith Carroll, Youth Development Manager, US Sailing

Looking Ahead: 2018 Class Worlds Coming to U.S. Shores

Professional Development for Top Coaches

Sign up for the US Sailing National Coaching Symposium!

Tuesday, November 28, 2017 at 9:00 AM - Wednesday, November 29, 2017 at 4:00 PM (EST) in Miami, Florida.

The National Coaching Symposium is two days of workshops and hands-on sessions with some of the leading sailing coaches in the country. The event will feature members of the US Sailing Team coaching staff and include topics such as team management, performance technology, and athlete development.

If you're a coach who's looking to hear the latest ideas, compare notes with the nation’s best, and pursue professional development, then you need to be attend this event.

Next session: January 28-31, 2018 at Clearwater Community Sailing Center, Clearwater, Florida. Application required.

The safety of our sailors is of paramount importance to US Sailing. US Sailing has a zero tolerance policy for abuse and misconduct. This includes not only on-water safety, but also safety ashore in any part of US Sailing’s programs. US Sailing is committed to creating safe and fun environments for all of our athletes, youth and adult.

The US Center for SafeSport website provides a wide range of resources which are available to US Sailing member clubs, sailing organizations, instructors, coaches and sailors.