Stephanie Roble, 2014 Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year
by Chicago Match Race on 25 Jan 2015
Stephanie Roble Chicago Match Race Center
US Sailing and Rolex USA announced last week that the 2014 Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year is Stephanie Roble. Her accomplishments on the water last year were recognized by the selection panel for her versatility; her accomplishments as a skipper and as a crew; and her competitive successes on a variety of platforms, sailing against both men and women.
One panelist remarked that Roble 'has made bold and courageous choices in her post-collegiate sailing life,' while another lauded her as 'the latest in a generation of women sailors who are working hard to make a name and a living at sailing. She is a trailblazer; she is a tremendous ambassador for the sport.'
Roble accumulated several remarkable results as the skipper of her women's match racing team, Epic Racing, who won the U.S. Women's Match Racing Championship, placed third at the ISAF Women's Match Racing World Championship, and finished the Women's International Match Racing (WIM) Series 2014 circuit in fourth place overall.
Epic Racing's Women's Worlds team included current CMRC Sailing Director Maggie Shea, Janel Zarkowsky and Lara Dallmen-Weiss. After a strong season, Epic Racing begins 2015 with a ranking of number three in the world and Roble holds the highest ranked position in the US Women's rankings.
Roble also had several impressive finishes in a variety of highly competitive fleet race regattas. Roble won the 95-boat Etchell's World Championship sailing with skipper Bill Hardesty, CMRC's co-founder who has also received the Rolex Yachtsman of the Year award in 2011, Taylor Canfield, a previous CMRC Sailing Director, and Marcus Eagan.
Roble also crewed on the seventh-place finisher at the 86-boat J/70 North American Championship with skipper John Brim, and the fifth place-finisher at the Melges 20 North American Championship with skipper Liam Kilroy.
'The nominees for this year were incredibly talented, and I am truly honored to be the 2014 Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year,' said Roble. 'The past year has been a fun adventure and true test of personal determination as I dove into professional sailing. I love sharing my passion for sailing with others and learning more about the sport each day. I was fortunate to be a member of several teams throughout the year, including my own match race team, which allowed me to reach many personal goals. In the end, it was through the massive support of my teammates who pushed me to become a better sailor and ultimately receive this coveted award. I am thrilled to join this admirable list of American sailors!'
Besides being a regular competitor at the Chicago Match Race Center (CMRC), Roble was on the CMRC staff from 2012-2013, and says CMRC has been incredibly important to the Rolex award-winning success in 2014 in three important ways:
'CMRC's easy access to sailing in events and practices has been phenomenal, and really helped grow my skills in all positions on the boat: as helmsman, tactician and crew. And when I was working on the staff in marketing and communications, CMRC helped give me the organizational skills needed to put together our match racing program, which is dynamic, international and often very complex.
'Finally, the opportunities and outstanding support given to me by Don Wilson, Jen Wilson, Tod Reynolds and the CMRC staff allowed us to compete in the WIM Series and pursue our program goals. This was essential to our team's success.'
With the various skills learned at CMRC translating into success on the racecourse, Roble said 'CMRC's contribution has given me the confidence to take this big step forward to pursue the sport professionally.'
Roble says she plans to do more training and racing in 2015 at CMRC, especially because CMRC's fleet of TOM 28's is similar to the boat type that will be used at the ISAF Women's World Championship this summer in Denmark. This is an important event for Roble and her team, who are currently ranked third in the ISAF Women's Match Race Ranking list, with the top spot in their sites.
Congratulations Steph!
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