2015 U.S. Disabled Sailing Championship kicks off in San Diego

San Diego, CA (August 26, 2015) – The spirit of sailing will be in full color this week in San Diego at the U.S. Disabled Sailing Championship, hosted by Southwestern Yacht Club. Doublehanded teams will race in the Martin 16 class sailboat for the Chandler Hovey Trophy on North San Diego Harbor this Thursday, August 27 through Saturday, August 29.

To increase participation and drive more awareness to the opportunities in adaptive sailing, US Sailing and the Southwestern Yacht Club have organized two development fleets in the singlehanded Liberty and triplehanded Capri 22 class sailboats. Sailors will take part in a racing clinic with practice on Wednesday led by US Sailing Paralympic Coach Betsy Alison.

Twenty-one wounded members of the armed forces, both retired and active duty, from the Warrior Sailing program will be on hand to participate in the racing, clinics and practice this week. They will be accompanied by Jennifer French, Founder of Warrior Sailing, and Ben Poucher, Program Director of Warrior Sailing. This program is focused on introducing active military and veterans with disabilities to sailing, learning to sail and basic sailboat racing.

This US Sailing National Championship is one of the oldest sailing regattas in the U.S. for sailors with disabilities. The talented field often includes Paralympians, current or former US Sailing Team members, and new contenders. First established in 1986, the U.S. Independence Cup became US Sailing’s National Championship for sailors with disabilities in 1989. In 2007, the regatta moved under the championships division of US Sailing and was renamed the U.S. Disabled Sailing Championship. Many competitors from this championship have gone on to represent the United States at the Paralympic Games including Nick Scandone, gold medalist at the 2008 Paralympics, and Jennifer French, silver medalist at the 2012 Paralympics.

The Chandler Hovey Trophy was donated at the 1994 Independence Cup by A.G.A. Correa and Co. to US Sailing. “Buzz” Hovey, for whom it is named, was active in 12 Metre racing in the ‘50s and ‘60s with the family owned, Easterner. Diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1947, he continued to sail and race actively, especially in his Shields Class boat, until 1981 when he retired from the racing circuit.

Event Website

Report by Event Media

About US Sailing
The United States Sailing Association (US Sailing), the national governing body for sailing, provides leadership, integrity, and growth for the sport in the United States. Founded in 1897 and headquartered in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, US Sailing is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization. US Sailing offers training and education programs for instructors and race officials, supports a wide range of sailing organizations and communities, issues offshore rating certificates, and provides administration and oversight of competitive sailing across the country, including National Championships and the US Sailing Team Sperry. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org.