FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 11, 2015
Portsmouth, R.I. – For a second consecutive Olympic quadrennium, American Yacht Club has chosen to stand with the US Sailing Team Sperry as a Gold Medal Partner Club. This status is reserved for clubs that support the team with contributions of $100,000 or more. In September 2015, American Yacht Club organized and hosted the weekend-long Sail To Victory Regatta, Junior Clinic and Gala, which succeeded in raising over $120,000 in team and athlete support funding.
Gold Medal Partner Clubs include some of America’s most venerable sailing institutions, including St. Francis Yacht Club, New York Yacht Club, The Sailing Foundation of New York, and California Yacht Club. Now joined by American Yacht Club, these organizations have contributed in a significant way to the health and growth of high-performance Olympic and Paralympic sailing in the United States.
Pictured: US Sailing Team Sperry athletes race alongside American Yacht Club members and junior sailors at the Sailing To Victory Regatta, Junior Clinic and Gala.
“American Yacht Club has long been a supporter of the US Sailing Team Sperry and a leading organization within the sport of sailing in the United States,” said Josh Adams, Managing Director of US Olympic Sailing. “The sincere generosity of American’s membership will help our Olympic and Paralympic athletes in profound and tangible ways. We are sincerely grateful for the club’s continued support.”
American Yacht Club’s connection with Olympic sailing goes back decades. Several members have competed at the Games, and won medals for their country. Among the club’s many accomplished sailors is Atlanta 1996 sailing bronze medalist Courtenay Becker Dey. “Our membership got a lot out of the weekend between the regatta, the event and the clinic,” said American Yacht Club Commodore Peter Duncan (Rye, N.Y.). “We are honored to be a Gold Medal Partner with the US Sailing Team Sperry, and we wish all the athletes great success in Rio 2016.”
Since 2005, US Sailing’s Medalist and Yacht Club Partner programs have raised over $6.5 million in support for the US Sailing Team Sperry. For more information about the Club Partner Program, please visit US Sailing’s website.
About The American Yacht Club
Founded in 1883, American Yacht Club stands among the preeminent sailing clubs of the world. In the club’s fleet have been America’s Cup Defenders, Trans-Atlantic champions and Bermuda Race winners. Its sailors have been Long Island Sound, National, North American and World Champions in a number of classes. They have captured Olympic medals – most recently in 1996 when Courtenay Becker Dey took a bronze in the Europe class. Four American Yacht Club skippers have won the US Women’s Sailing Championship. Through the years, the American Yacht Club Annual Invitational Cruise has been a test of sailing, boats and seamanship, as well as a family competition and plain old fun afloat. For more information, visit http://www.americanyc.org
About the US Sailing Team Sperry
The US Sailing Team Sperry is managed by the United States Sailing Association (US Sailing), the national governing body for the sport of sailing and sailboat racing. The top boats in each Olympic and Paralympic class are selected annually to be members of the US Sailing Team Sperry. US Sailing helps these elite athletes with financial, logistical, coaching, technical, fitness, marketing and communications support. The title sponsor of the team is Sperry; other sponsors include Gold-Level partner Sunbrella and Silver-Level partners Harken, Team McLube and Groupe Beneteau. Yale Cordage is a team supplier. The US Sailing Center Miami is an Olympic training site. Oakcliff Sailing and Clearwater Community Sailing Center are US Sailing Team Sperry Training Centers. Chubb Personal Insurance and the Gowrie Group sponsors US Sailing’s National Team Tour, a nationwide presentation program for US Sailing Team Sperry athletes. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org/olympics
The United States Sailing Association (US Sailing), the national governing body for sailing, provides leadership, integrity, and growth for the sport in the United States. Founded in 1897 and headquartered in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, US Sailing is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization. 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 US Sailing Team Sperry. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org
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Press Contact: Will Ricketson, Olympic Communications Manager, US Sailing. willricketson@ussailing.org, +1 (978) 697-2384.