US Sailing announce Development Team

55 sailors to boost future Olympic prospects

55 talented athletes have been named to the 2011 US Sailing Development Team, the youth pipeline team supported by US Sailing’s Olympic Sailing Committee.

The USSDT was created in 2009 to help young athletes, who have been identified as future Olympic prospects, acquire the skills necessary to launch successful campaigns and compete at the Olympic level.

“In 2010 our athletes medaled in every non-Olympic development class, and members of the 2010 USSDT also had some great results in the Olympic classes,” said High Performance Director/Head Coach Kenneth Andreasen, who oversees the national coaching and development program. “That success came from a lot of hard work and specialized training.”

In addition to receiving elite-level coaching, guidance and mentoring, the USSDT members benefit from joint training with US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics members and other top young sailors from across the United States. The OSC will also support these athletes with shipping and logistical assistance and advice, as well as access to the OSC’s Performance Enhancement Team of physical therapists, trainers and nutritionists.

“The first order of business for the US Sailing Development Team members is to set up a competition and training schedule for 2011 with their coaches,” said Andreasen. “In addition to competing in regattas against the best national and international sailors, the USSDT will participate in a number of training camps throughout the year including the Performance Enhancement Team Training Camp in Colorado Springs, with the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics.”

Athletes selected for the 2011 US Sailing Development Team:
470 (Two Person Dinghy) – 8 athletes
Sydney Bolger (Long Beach, Calif.) / Leah Volk (Lexington, Ky.)
Marlena Fauer (New York, N.Y.) / Carly Shevitz (Santa Barbara, Calif.)
Annie Haeger (Lake Forest, Ill.) / Briana Provancha (San Diego, Calif.)
Sam Williams (Summit, N.J.) / Bernie Roesler (Franklin Lakes, N.J.)

29er (Skiff) – 6 athletes
Paris Henken (Coronado, Calif.) / Connor Kelter (Newport Beach, Calif.)
Sterling Henken (Coronado, Calif.) / Michael Deady (Menlo Park, Calif.)
Matt Mollerus (Larchmont, N.Y.) / Andrew Mollerus (Larchmont, N.Y.)

49er (Men's Two Person Dinghy High Performance) – 14 athletes
Mac Agnese (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) / Timothy Zenderman (North Bay Village, Fla.)
Alex Bishop (Baltimore, Md.) / Val Smith (Annapolis, Md.)
Joseph Morris (Annapolis, Md.) / Fred Strammer (Nokomis, Fla.)
Ryan Pesch (Chicago, Ill.) / Trevor Burd (Marblehead, Mass.)
Antoine Screve (Ross, Calif.) / James Moody (Tiburon, Calif.)
Oliver Toole (Santa Barbara, Calif.) / Hans Henken (Coronado, Calif.)
Declan Whitmyer (Stamford, Conn.) / Ian Storck (Huntington, N.Y.)

Finn (Men's One Person Dinghy Heavy) – 2 athletes
Luke Lawrence (Palm City, Fla.)
Caleb Paine (San Diego, Calif.)

I420 (Two Person Dinghy) – 6 athletes
Morgan Kiss (Holland, Mich.) / Christina Lewis (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.)
Georgie Ryan (San Diego, Calif.) / Marly Isler (La Jolla, Calif.)
Christopher Williford (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) / Duncan Williford (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)

Laser (One Person Dinghy) – 11 athletes
Charlie Buckingham (Newport Beach, Calif.)
Robert Crane (Darien, Conn.)
Cam Cullman (Rye, N.Y.)
Daniel DelBello (Bedford, N.Y.)
Greg Martinez (Houston, Texas)
EJ O'Mara (Burton, Mich.)
Dodge Rees (Pensacola, Fla.)
Kyle Rogachenko (Collegeville, Penn.)
Christopher Stocke (Sarasota, Fla.)
Derick Vranizan (Shoreline, Wash.)
John Wallace (St. Petersburg, Fla.)

Laser Radial (One Person Dinghy) – 8 athletes
Reed Baldridge (Seabrook, Texas)
Kieran Chung (Newport Beach, Calif.)
Carson Crain (Houston, Texas)
Claire Dennis (Saratoga, Calif.)
Mitchell Kiss (Holland, Mich.)
Sarah Lihan (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)
Erika Reineke (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)
Ryan Schmitz (Rockville Centre, N.Y.)

“Right now we are gearing up for two USSDT Training Camps, November 26-28 and December 18-21, in Miami, Fla.,” said Olympic Coach Leandro Spina. “We expect to see most of the USSDT at both camps, as they are mandatory training. We’ll also expect around 50 sailors from the U.S., Europe, South America and the Caribbean who are not on the USSDT, but want to benefit from the elite coaching and experience. We welcome any sailors who want to participate to register.”