2016 U.S. Women’s Match Racing Championship
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (September 9, 2016) – In an exciting celebration of match racing and women’s sailing in general, a collection of the top teams in the country have qualified to race for the Allegra Knapp Mertz Trophy this weekend in Annapolis. Teams will the J/22 class sailboat at the 2016 U.S. Women’s Match Racing Championship, hosted by Annapolis Yacht Club, this Friday through Sunday, September 9-11.
Teams will race over three days near the mouth of the Severn River on Chesapeake Bay. The highest placing eligible skipper will be awarded an invitation to the 2017 Buddy Melges Challenge at Sail Sheboygan in Wisconsin.
Defending champion Nicole Breault (San Francisco, Calif.) has returned to defend the 2015 title. Breault also won the 2015 World Sailing Nations Cup in Russia. Previous winners of the U.S. Women’s Match Racing Championship include an impressive list of the top women’s sailors in recent U.S. history. Cory Sertl, Betsy Alison, Sally Barkow, Anna Tunnicliffe, Stephanie Roble, Genny Tulloch, Liz Baylis, and Debbie Cappozi have all won this US Sailing National Championship.
Racing Format
- Stage 1 – Preliminary round robin racing
- Stage 2 – Quarterfinals
- Stage 3 – Semifinals and Finals
Media & Coverage
- For results, standings, photos, Twitter real-time updates, and more information from the 2016 U.S. Women’s Match Racing Championship, please visit the event website.
- Participate in the conversation this week on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook with #womensmatch16.
- List of Teams
The 2016 U.S. Women’s Match Racing Championship is sponsored by Gill North America and Switlik Survival Products.
US Sailing Media Contact: Jake Fish, jakefish@ussailing.org
About US Sailing
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.
About Gill North America
Gill NA, with headquarters near Atlanta, GA is the exclusive importer and distributor of Gill-brand foul weather gear in North America including Caribbean, US and Canada. Gill is a worldwide apparel and accessories brand serving the marine industry with over three decades of experience. Gill specializes in high tech, breathable waterproof clothing. The company develops and markets a variety of performance-oriented, award-winning apparel and accessories for virtually every type of boating activity with product lines that include foul weather gear; interactive layering systems; footwear; gloves; bags; junior gear; scholastic gear and team wear. Gill products are available through hundreds of independent dealers and select West Marine Stores. For further information, please contact: Gary Barker at 941-505-2111 or gary.barker@gillna.com.
About Switlik Survival Products
Established in 1920, Switlik Parachute Co. has been owned and operated by the Switlik family for four generations and is known worldwide as a manufacturer of the highest quality sewn and heat sealed inflatable safety and survival products for the aviation, marine, and military/government markets. Our capabilities include a wide variety of anti-exposure and anti-g suits, inflatable life rafts, inflatable life vests, inflation systems and other specialty textile-based military equipment all manufactured at our 85,000 sq. ft. facility located in Trenton, NJ USA. www.switlik.com