Contact: Cynthia Goss
203-453-2731
U.S. Match Racing Championship for the
Prince of Wales Bowl Begins this Week
Portsmouth, R.I. (September 19, 2007) — Eleven match-racing teams from
throughout the United States will head to Newport, Rhode Island, this week
to compete in the U.S. Match Racing Championship for the Prince of Wales
Bowl, a US SAILING National Championship hosted by the New York Yacht Club
from September 19-23. The event—sponsored by Rolex Watch U.S.A., Rosetta
Stone and Dry Creek Vineyard—will feature four days of racing in Sonars.
The field of competitors includes two sailors who have established a high
profile in the annals of the event's history, for their most recent wins.
Dave Perry (Southport, Conn.), sailing for Pequot Yacht Club, returns as
defending champion, racing this year with crewmembers Chris Museler
(Portsmouth, R.I.) and David Moffet (Jamestown, R.I.). After a close Finals
at last year's event, Perry captured the 2006 title, which was his second
win at this US SAILING championship in over two decades: he had won the
event 24 years prior, sailing for the Yale Corinthian Yacht Club.
Brian Angel (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) returns to the event after winning in
2005 and finishing second in '06. Angel—sailing for King Harbor Yacht Club
with crewmembers Payson Infelise (Newport Beach, Calif.) and Michael Delanty
(Redondo Beach, Calif.)—lost the title as last year's defending champion to
Perry in the Final round.
The two skippers entered the last race with a 2-2 score in the best-of-five
series. Perry had the edge to win last year, but Angel returns to take
another run at the title—and possibly another run at the sailor who proved
to be his nemesis at last year's event.
Benz Faget (Metairie, La.), who finished fourth last year after losing in
the Petit Final round, returns this year with crewmembers David Jurkowski
(Newport, R.I.) and David Zahn (Metairie, La.) to represent both the
Southern and New Orleans yacht clubs.
No stranger to US SAILING National Championship action is Katy Pilley-Lovell
(New Orleans, La.). Earlier this month, Pilley-Lovell reclaimed the Mrs.
Charles Adams Trophy for the third year in a row at the U.S. Women's Match
Racing Championship, sailed on the Detroit River. This trophy is awarded to
the second-place boat at the women's match-race event. Pilley-Lovell comes
to Newport this week to make a play for the national title, with her
Southern Yacht Club team of Debby Willits (La Porte, Texas), William Andrew
Loe III (Baton Rouge, La.) and Tim Hotchkiss (Waverly, R.I.).
To follow the match-race action at this ISAF Grade 3 event during the
championship, visit the event's website at
www.ussailing.org/championships/adult/usmrc to
find daily reports, photos, and race results. The U.S. Match Racing
Championship is part of US SAILING’s National Adult Championships, all of
which are sponsored by Rolex Watch U.S.A. For more information about these
events, visit
www.ussailing.org/championships.
About US SAILING
The United States Sailing Association (US SAILING) is the national governing
body for sailing. Founded in 1897 and headquartered in Portsmouth, Rhode
Island, the organization provides leadership for the sport of sailing in the
United States. 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 U.S. Olympic and
Paralympic Sailing Teams. For more information, please visit
www.ussailing.org.
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