The spring season is well underway for College Sailing. There are 4 national titles up for grabs and teams are vying for berths. Stanford University is set to host the second Women’s Team Race National Championship before The US Merchant Marine Academy welcomes teams for Women’s Fleet Race, Open Team Race and Open Fleet Race National Championships.
SELECTION PROCESS
For the second year, berths to nationals will be selected by a selection committee. These committees are made up of five voting members and one non-voting ICSA competition committee member. The selection committee members cannot be coaches and must disclose any affiliation such as donor, alum, parent, etc. Additionally, the open selection committee must have two women members and the women’s selection committee must have three women members.
Automatic Qualifier (AQ) berths will be awarded to conference champions in the women’s team racing and open team racing disciplines, and to the conference champions and runners up in the open and womens fleet racing disciplines. The remaining berths are awarded to at-large teams chosen via a structured selection process by their respective selection committees.
Selections will be announced via College Sailing’s social media pages and email lists on the following dates:
- Women’s and Open Team Race on April 18
- Women’s and Open Fleet Race on May 2
COLLEGE SAILING WOMEN’S TEAM RACE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
The 2023 College Sailing Women’s Team Race National Championship will be hosted by Stanford University on April 29-30.
Bernard Muir, The Jaquish & Kenninger Director of Athletics remarked “We are thrilled to be hosting the second annual Women’s Team Race National Championship later this month. Thank you to the ICSA for providing us with this opportunity. We can’t wait to welcome the best collegiate sailors in the country to the Bay Area and look forward to hosting a phenomenal event.” Details are in the process of being finalized and will be updated to the website.
During the inaugural 2022 College Sailing Women’s Team Race National Championship hosted by Brown University, Stanford University finished third closely behind Boston College and Yale who took home the title. The field will be competitive with returning athletes and newcomers representing their teams. Mitch Brindley, ICSA President, commented “In our second year of the College Sailing Women’s Team Race National Championship, it is exciting to see more women having the opportunity to compete at a higher level in team racing.”
Website: https://nationals.collegesailing.org/events/2023-womens-team-race
COLLEGE SAILING NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS FOR WOMEN’S FLEET RACE, OPEN TEAM RACE, AND OPEN FLEET RACE
The remaining three national championships of the 2023 spring College Sailing season will be hosted by The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy located in Kings Point, New York. The Open Fleet Race National Championship is returning after being held here in 2000.
Head Coach, Michael McBrien commented that, “It is not only an amazing honor to host the event, but our sailors will be able to compete at Nationals having the upper hand at their home venue. Knowing the intricacies of our tricky current and breeze conditions is like having home field advantage in other sports.”
These three championships will span two weeks at the end of May and into the beginning of June.
- College Sailing Women’s Fleet Race National Championship, Semifinals and Finals, May 23-26
- College Sailing Open Team Race National Championship, May 27-29
- College Sailing Open Fleet Race National Championship, Semifinals and Finals, May 30-June 2
Rich Cain, Director of Waterfront Activities, highlighted the venue “Throughout college sailing, Kings Point is recognized as one of the premier venues in the Nation. Paired with the great sailing conditions of Western Long Island Sound, our assets, facilities, and waterfront staff allow us to run top-tier events without a hitch.” Near Yocum Sailing Center, there will be jumbotrons with a livestream, food trucks on site and an outdoor pool. Additionally, VIP packages will be sold leading up to the event. These include all you and eat and drink along with priority spectating area, and restroom facilities. Cain added “Not to mention, the views of New York City are incomparable.” For spectating off-site, all three of these events will have live coverage.
Website: https://nationals.collegesailing.org/
Women’s Team Race Apparel Store: Home | 2023 Women’s Team Race Nationals at Stanford (coralreefsailing.com)
Open Apparel Store: https://stores.coralreefsailing.com/CSN-2023/shop/home
AFTERGUARD
The 2023 College Sailing Nationals Afterguard Alumni Regatta is back for former college sailors to head back out to the race course together. Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club of Oyster Bay, New York is planning to host in their Sonar fleet. Alumni teams are welcome to apply for a berth by either submitting on the website or by emailing Willets Meyer. The dates for this event are June 3-4, 2023.
Website: https://nationals.collegesailing.org/events/2023-afterguard
Email: Willets Meyer, wmeyer@farrellfritz.com
SPONSORS
Dermatone – The Official Skincare Sponsor and Supplier of College Sailing
Zim – West Coast Sailing – Dwyer Mast (Startling Line Sailing) – Official Sponsor and Supplier of College Sailing
Marlow – Official Sponsor and Supplier of College Sailing
US Sailing – Media partner and sponsor of The Robert H. Hobbs Sportsman of the Year
Quantum Sails sponsor of The Women’s College Sailor of the Year
