Annapolis hosts U.S. Women’s Match Race Champs

The 2023 U.S. Women’s Match Racing Championship will be held August 18-20 and hosted for the second time by Annapolis Yacht Club in Annapolis, MD. US Sailing has invited 10 of the best amateur skippers in the country to battle it out in identical J/22 sloops on the Chesapeake Bay for the prestigious Allegra Knapp Mertz Trophy.

Janel Zarkowsky evolved significantly as a sailor by competing in the United States Women’s Match Racing Championship. Zarkowsky first participated in the event as crew for skipper Stephanie Roble and learned a lot about sailing keelboats and the match racing discipline.

Eventually, the Annapolis native felt comfortable enough to skipper her own entry and lead a team. She steadily improved and has now finished as runner-up at the US Sailing championship four times. Along the way, Zarkowsky emerged as one of the world’s finest women’s match race skippers. She is ranked 11th on the World Sailing Women’s Match Race Rankings and has consistently finished in the Top 10.

Annapolis Yacht Club is hosting the 2023 U.S. Women’s Match Racing Championship and Zarkowsky is one of the top contenders in the field. She is excited about competing on home waters and for sailing enthusiasts in Annapolis to see high-level match racing.

“I’ve been coming to this event for more than a decade. This is where I started match racing and found confidence in my driving,” Zarkowsky said. “This championship has been critical to my development as a sailor. I look forward to doing it every year.”

Allie Blecher from California Yacht Club (Los Angeles, CA) is the defending champion and is considered a pre- regatta favorite. Blecher led Team BAAM to victory in the 2022 event hosted by Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club in Oyster Bay, New York. Racing was held in Sonars with Blecher beating Zarkowsky in the final. Team BAAM remains intact with Beka Schiff, Katja Sertl, and Ali Blumenthal-Stokes crewing for Blecher.

Zarkowsky will once again wear two hats for the U.S. Women’s Match Racing Championship as she also works for US Sailing and serves as the organization’s event chair for the regatta. She believes Bridget Groble from Chicago Yacht Club (Chicago, IL) is another leading contender.

Groble and her Bow Down Racing team placed fourth at last year’s championship and she has consistently reached the semifinals. “Bridget is always competitive, and I think she is due for a breakthrough,” Zarkowsky said.

Past champion Nicole Breault and former Olympian Molly Vandemoer are both crewing for Hailey Thompson of the San Francisco Yacht Club (Belvedere, CA). Another talented skipper representing Annapolis is Marie Crump (nee Klok), who represented Denmark on the world match racing circuit for years.

Zarkowsky is a product of the Severn Sailing Association junior program and was a member of the sailing teams at Annapolis High School and Boston University. She is a longtime assistant coach with the Georgetown intercollegiate sailing team in addition to her duties as Siebel Sailors Program coach for US Sailing.

Zarkowsky has routinely competed in the U.S. Women’s Match Racing Championship with crews consisting of current and former Georgetown sailors. She takes pride in developing a “horde of Hoyas” into competent match racers. Two Georgetown graduates, Rose Edwards (main trimmer, tactics) and Meaghan MacRae (jib trimmer, pit), are part of this year’s team. Martha Parker, founder and owner of Team One Newport and a veteran sailor, will work the bow.

“Annapolis is a unique venue because of the current, powerboat chop, and notoriously light and shifty winds. I’ve sailed here a lot so hopefully that gives me a slight advantage,” Zarkowsky said. “This is high-level racing, and every mistake becomes apparent against well-trained teams. It’s important to be patient and adaptive during the round-robin competition and find a way to reach the semifinals.”

The 2023 U.S. Women’s Match Racing Championship gets underway with a clinic for competitors organized by US Sailing on Wednesday, August 17. Action on the water begins the following day with the round-robin portion of the series. The four teams with the best records upon completion of the round-robin advance to the semifinals.

Event Details – Event website – Entries

Source: Linda Ambrose, AYC Harborside Director