Final Results

More than 70 boats set sail off the Jensen Beach Causeway at the USA Junior Olympic Sailing Festival hosted by the US Sailing Center Martin County, Florida.

The event was preceded on Friday by a racing clinic led by David Ames, former US Optimist National Champion. Two days of friendly competition began in 12-15 knots of breeze and plenty of sunshine on Saturday, December 12. West Marine sponsored the event. Prizes were supplied by Gill North America.

In the Opti Novice fleet, known as the Green fleet, 22 young sailors gave it their all in 11 races over the two days of the regatta. Racers awoke to no wind Sunday morning, so the Race Committee postponed racing and took the Green Fleeters “tubing” until the wind filled in around noon. At the end of the day, Will Elect took home the gold medal, while Mark Larcher and Michael Deson, (St. Petersburg, FL), won silver and bronze, respectively.

The rest of the Optimist fleet featured tight competition among 33 sailors. Brian Kamilar, (Miami, FL), took the bullet in the first two races, with Niklas Anderson, (Boca Raton, FL), right on his heels in second. Anderson triumphed in the third race, but Kamilar came back strong in the next four races, securing the gold medal with a total of 7 points. Anderson took second with 13 points. Chris Vetter, (St. Petersburg, FL), won the bronze medal with 20 points.

The 420 sailors and the Radial sailors raced on a circle a little further out in the Indian River, and therefore enjoyed more breeze than the Opti fleets. Nine races were sailed by both fleets. Competition in the 420 class was split, with eight sailors competing in Club 420s and four sailors racing Collegiate 420s. (The Club 420 features a spinnaker and one trapeze, the collegiate model does not.) In the Club 420 fleet, skipper Noel Shriner, (Jensen Beach, FL), helmed his boat to a first place finish. The duel for the silver was a close one with skipper JP Wright, (Fort Lauderdale, FL), edging out skipper Meredith Muller, (Fort Pierce, FL), by a mere three points.

A mere three points separated the gold, silver and bronze medallists in the Radial Fleet. Bobby Noonan, (Fort Lauderdale, FL), took gold with five bullets and a total of 16 points. The silver medal was decided by a single point and was won by Garrett Pyros, (St. Petersburg, FL), with 18 points. Close on Garret’s heels with 19 points, Emily Hill, (Pine Crest, FL), earned the bronze medal.

There is one remaining Junior Olympic Sailing Festival on the 2001 schedule: the Orange Bowl International Youth Regatta held December 27-30 at the Coral Reef Yacht Club in Miami, Florida. Over 300 sailors from around the country as well as Bermuda and South America are expected to compete.

USA Junior Olympic Sailing is a grass-roots youth development program that defines a path for youngsters to become involved in sailing and develop their skills though events nationwide, with a goal of making sailing a life-long sport. The United States Olympic Committee Junior Olympic Program involves more than 3,500,000 participants in over 20 sports annually. The USA Junior Olympic Sailing Festival program is sponsored by West Marine, the nation’s largest specialty retailer of recreational boating supplies and apparel. It offers its broad assortment to boaters worldwide through its 232 retail stores, an international catalog mail order division, a wholesale division and an Internet site, www.westmarine.com. West Marine is proud to be the presenting sponsor of the US SAILING Junior Olympic Sailing Festivals, as part of a continuing commitment to encourage youth to enjoy boating as a positive recreational activity.

For information on USA Junior Olympic Sailing, contact Lee Parks at US SAILING, juniorolympics@ussailing.org or 401/683-0800, visit the web site.

Final Results:

Opti Green (novice, age 15 & under/ 22 boats)
Gold: Will Ellect34 pts226118355(9)1
Silver: Mark Larcher 42 pts141622911(18)15
Bronze: Michael Deson62 pts(13)1744111139210

Opti White (age 10 & under/ 6 boats)
Gold: Mateo Vargas96 pts122019(22)101619
Silver: Jason Pyros141 pts2426(32)31112524
Bronze: Marissa Lihan143 pts(33)302828211521

Opti Blue (age 11-12/12 boats)
Gold: Nicklas Anderson13 pts22132(18)3
Silver: Christopher Taylor35 pts6(10)85862
Bronze: Nick Voss35 pts557(12)648

Opti Red (age 13-15/ 15 boats)
Gold: Brian Kamilar10 pts1121131
Silver: Chris Vetter26 pts3634325
Bronze: Guillermo Alverez56 pts4341151910

Opti Overall (33 boats)
Gold: Brian Kamilar10 pts1121131
Silver: Nicklas Anderson13 pts22132(18)3
Bronze: Chris Vetter26 pts3634325

Radial (14 boats)
Gold: Bobby Noonan16 pts1131(5)3151
Silver: Garrett Pyros18 pts(3)31322322
Bronze: Emily Hill19 pts222(6)11416

Club 420 (4 boats)
Gold: Noel Shriner17 pts114215111
Silver: JP Wright23 pts421421324
Bronze: Meredith Muller26 pts343152242

Collegiate 420 (2 boats)
Gold: Connor Voehl 39 pts5555455(6)5
Silver: Robert Hall50 pts(7)7776665