US SAILING, national governing body for the sport, and the California Yacht Club are gearing up for 60 young female sailors who will soon arrive in Marina Del Rey, Calif., for the U.S. Junior Women’s Singlehanded Championship. The event, sponsored by Vanguard Sailboats, will take place July 30th through August 5th and is open to young female sailors between the ages of 13 and 18. The 60 competitors will not only vie for the National Championship title and US SAILING’s Nancy Leiter Clagett Memorial Trophy, but also for a spot on the 2006 US Youth World Team which will represent the U.S. at the 2006 Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship in Great Britain.

Before official racing for the Championship kicks off, competitors will participate in a two-day racing clinic led by Mike Kalin (Boston, Mass.), US SAILING’s Youth Development Coach. Kalin, returning fresh from his trip to coach the US Youth World Team in Korea last week, will be assisted by several other coaches, including US Sailing Team-members Molly Carapiet (Belvedere, Calif.) and Amanda Clark (Shelter Island, N.Y.). The clinic gives competitors the opportunity to improve their sailing skills before vying for a spot on the 2006 US Youth World Team.

Since the event was first held in 1986, the Championship has played a major role in the country’s development of junior women sailing. Allie Blecher (Fullerton, Calif.) and Caroline Wright (Fort Lauderdale, FL) are among the several competitors returning for another shot at the trophy. Demonstrating great improvement in her sailing skills, Blecher placed fourth in last year’s competition, two years after finishing 31st in her first effort. In a similar fashion, Wright has also shown a similar improvement over the years. Last year’s winner of the National Championship, Paige Railey, will not return this year. Railey just became Youth World Champion last week for a second time in her sailing career and will be competing in regattas in Europe this summer.

The exciting competition will be raced in 60 Laser Radials provided by leading boat manufacturer and event sponsor Vanguard Sailboats. The Laser Radial carries similar performance characteristics as the very popular Laser, but the Radial’s slightly less powerful sail plan makes it the perfect boat for smaller singlehanded sailors and youth sailors. This design has done much to advance the sport of sailing and sailboat racing among women.

The winner of the Jr. Women U.S. Singlehanded Championship will be awarded the Nancy Leiter Clagett Memorial trophy by US SAILING. The trophy gets its namesake from one of the country’s renowned female sailors, Nancy Leiter Clagett, who was a champion in many classes of boats. Commonly known among sailing enthusiasts as “The Leiter,” the perpetual trophy was created by the late C. Thomas Clagett in memory of his wife and for the purposes of encouraging sailing among junior girls in the United States.

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