ILCA 6Erika Reineke

Erika began her sailing journey in the Optimist Dinghy at age 8 through the Lauderdale Yacht Club program. However, it wasn’t until she decided to dedicate her life to the sport at age 12 that she started to win titles. In the Optimist, she won two consecutive Girl’s National Championships, placed 4th in the Coed National Championship, and qualified to compete internationally for the United States at a young age.

Moving up from the Opti, Reineke was inspired to pursue a career in the ILCA 6 due to two strong influences and coaches, Anna Tunnicliffe (2008 Beijing ILCA 6 Gold Medalist) and Brad Funk (Multi-Olympic campaigner). In the ILCA 6, she qualified to represent the United States in the 2010 ISAF Youth Worlds in Istanbul, Turkey bringing home a bronze medal. Shortly after Turkey, she traveled to Largs, Scotland where she won my first ILCA Youth World Championship. The following year Erika qualified again for the ISAF Youth Worlds in Zadar, Croatia, this time earning a silver medal. Later in 2011, she was able to defend her title as the ILCA Youth World Champion making it her second World Champion title. Also in 2011 she competed in and won the United States Youth Championship consisting of the top sailors in the country from age 15-19. Ending her youth career in 2012, Reineke was able to solidify a third World Championship title in Boltenhagen, Germany in the U21 Division while placing 8th overall in the Women’s Division.

After high school, Erika went on to pursue her College Sailing goals at Boston College with Coach Greg Wilkinson. During her four years there, she learned how to be a teammate, leader, and champion. In 2017, the Boston College team pushed her to become the first person to win four Singlehanded National Championships. Throughout her college sailing career, Reineke was a four-time Women’s All-American, Coed All-American, three-time Quantum Women’s Sailor of the Year Finalist, later earning the title in 2017, and a College Sailor of the Year Finalist. Other accolades received at Boston College include four Women’s MVP Awards and a Leadership Award from the Athletic Department. In the spring of 2017, she graduated with a Bachelor’s of Science in Environmental Geosciences and was named to the ACC Academic Honor Roll.

Transitioning from College Sailing to a full-time Olympic campaigner in the spring of 2017, Reineke had a phenomenal first year on the international circuit. Winning the first event held at the 2020 Olympic Games venue in Tokyo, Japan, she showed that the U.S. had medal potential in four years’ time. Later that year, she was voted Rolex Yachtswomen on the Year and received the award at the New York Yacht Club. The award is one of the most prestigious in sailing and Erika regards it as a high honor to have been selected from such a talented pool of female sailors.

Though she had multiple podium finishes throughout the 2020 Olympic quadrennium, Reineke fell short of the qualifying for the Games. However, her passion for the sport never wavered. She transitioned into the double-handed women’s skiff, the 49er FX, to crew for two years and gained invaluable experience in another Olympic class. Ultimately, Erika made the decision to return to the ILCA 6 in the fall of 2022. Her enthusiasm for the boat reignited at the ILCA World Championships where she was in medal contention for the entire event. In the end, she placed 10th overall, earned Tier 1 status on the US Sailing Team, and finished as the top American.

Erika won U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Sailing in the ILCA 6 and will go on to represent Team USA at the Paris 2024 Olympics this summer in Marseille.