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Contact:
Marni Lane
617-671-8332
401-683-0800 x671
 

LASER RADIAL YOUTH SAILORS

GEAR UP FOR START OF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

 
Portsmouth, R.I. (August 4, 2006) — A team of top youth sailors representing the United States will arrive in Los Angeles, California Saturday to compete in the 2006 Laser Radial World Championship. Almost 200 sailors will vie for the Youth World Champion title over six days of racing, beginning Monday, August 7. US SAILING, the national governing body of the sport, together with Vanguard Sailboats, an official sponsor of the US Sailing Team, will send the American team to this event.

The five sailors who make up the US Laser Radial Youth World Team are: Randy Hartranft (Bayville, N.J.), Tedd Himler (Manhasset, N.Y.), Kyle Rogachenko (Collegeville, Pa.), Ian Sutherland (Toms River, N.J.) and Jerry Tullo (Staten Island, N.Y.).

Coach Brett Davis (Naples, Fla.), who will accompany the sailors to California, said he expects at least one top-ten finish. Rogachenko, 18, finished eighth at last year’s Laser Radial Youth World Championship in Fortaleza, Brazil.

“We have a strong team,” said Davis, who recently observed the international Laser contenders at the 2006 Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship in Weymouth, Great Britain. “I expect the competition to be challenging, compared to previous years.”

“It will depend partially on the weather,” said Davis. “If we have stronger winds, our sailors will be up there in the top five.”

Hosted by the California Yacht Club in Marina Del Rey, just outside Los Angeles, the Laser Radial World Championship consists of three world championships: Men, Women and Youth. The Men and Women Championships conclude today, and the Youth Championship begins Saturday, August 5.

As part of a nationwide program to support youth development for sailing, the US Radial Youth World Team was created by Vanguard and US SAILING to encourage young sailors to get more experience on the international race course. The five sailors will receive a grant to help off-set the expenses incurred while attending the World Championship. The sailors, who must be between the ages of 15 and 18, were selected based on their individual rankings on the Laser Radial Grand Prix in 2005.

For information on the Laser Radial Youth World Championship, please visit the California Yacht Club's event website at www.calyachtclub.com or the International Laser Class Association website at www.laserinternational.org.

About Vanguard
Demonstrating its continued commitment to the development of youth sailing, Vanguard Sailboats is providing sponsorship support for the US Laser Radial Youth World Team for a fifth consecutive year. Vanguard is the leading world manufacturer, and largest US supplier, of recreational and high performance small sailboats. Vanguard products nclude the Sunfish and Laser, two of the most recognized brands in the sailing world. Vanguard was started in 1967 and is located in Portsmouth, Rhode Island. For more information please visit www.teamvanguard.com.

About US SAILING
The United States Sailing Association (US SAILING) is the national governing body for sailing and sailboat racing. Headquartered in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, the organization's mission is to encourage participation and promote excellence in sailing and racing in the U.S. US SAILING offers training and education programs, supports a wide range of sailing organizations and communities, and provides administration and oversight of competitive sailing across the country, including the US Sailing Teams and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Sailing Teams. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org.

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