US SAILING Recognizes 2007 Coaches of the Year

by Derby Anderson on 20 Mar 2008 US SAILING's Olympic Sailing Committee (OSC) recognizes three outstanding sailing coaches for the 2007 Coaches of the Year Awards. The awards are a part of the United States Olympic Committee's (USOC) Coach Recognition Program, which highlights the accomplishments and contributions of coaches who train athletes at all levels of sport.

The OSC has nominated sailing coaches to the USOC in three categories: National Coach of the Year, Volunteer Coach of the Year, and Developmental Coach of the Year.

National Coach: Bill Ward
As a former college All-American, Georgetown University Sailing Team captain, and national champion sailor and coach, Bill Ward (Newport Beach, Calif.) possesses a uniquely unassuming and versatile focus that has fostered success at the highest levels of collegiate and Olympic sailing. Wherever he coaches, sailors exhibit distinct performance improvements once Ward joins the team. His experience, patience and clarity motivate sailors to reach within themselves for new levels of achievement.

As the assistant coach at the St. Mary's College of Maryland, Ward brought home three 2007 national championships in the Women's, Team Racing and Sloop divisions. Ward further showcased his coaching skills when he traveled to Brazil for the Pan-American Games and coached the USA to win two gold medals and a bronze. Last fall, Ward coached Laser sailor Andrew Campbell at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Sailing. After a grueling, tight battle for the Olympic berth, Campbell won the trip to China.

Ward won the respect of the sailing community and will attend the Olympic Games this summer to coach the Campbell in the Laser class. In 2007 Ward coached some of the most competitive events in the sport and still managed sail in his spare time, winning the Lightning North American Championship. Bill Ward's dedication to coaching transfers flawlessly from college sailing to the Olympics, and his accomplishments make him the perfect recipient of US SAILING's National Coach of the Year Award.

Previous winners of sailing's National Coach of the Year Award are Zachary Leonard (Branford, Conn.), Rollin 'Skip' Whyte (Wickford, R.I.), Scott Ikle (Geneva, N.Y.), Serge Jorgensen (Sarasota, Fla.), Jay Glaser (Long Beach, Calif.), Betsy Alison (Newport, R.I.) and Luther Carpenter (New Orleans, La.).

Volunteer Coach: Matt Dubois
As US SAILING's Volunteer Coach of the Year, Matt Dubois (Grosse Ile, Mich.) exhibits tireless promotion of sailing. His accomplishments have impressed the broader sporting world and in addition to being honored by US SAILING, Dubois has been named as one of five finalists for the USOC's Volunteer Coach of the Year. Forty-three Olympic and Pan-American sport organizations selected their nominees for this annual award, and the winner will be announced in April 15, during the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Media Summit in Chicago, Ill. Dubois achievements in 2007 focus on junior sailing in his home town.

He created the Grosse Ile High School Sailing Team, he is the president of his local community sailing program, and he sits on at least four more committees that support junior sailing. Five years after starting the Grosse Ile High School Sailing Team, Dubois coached his 2007 team to earn multiple second- and third-place finishes in 420 and Laser regattas. Last year, his team came in eighth of 24 teams at the MISSA Great Lakes High School Championships and fourth overall at the Grosse Ile Invitational. Dubois also donated a 26-foot boat to the team for Wednesday night sailing, filling the common void of junior big boat exposure.

Sailing has become one of the biggest varsity sports at Grosse Ile High School, and Dubois' proudest moments come when he sees students roam the halls wearing lettermen's jackets with sailboats on them. For his selfless hard work as a leader and a sailor, Matt Dubois is US SAILING's 2007 Volunteer Coach of the Year.

Previous winners of sailing's Volunteer Coach of the Year Award are Ryan Hamm (Charleston, S.C.), Susan Kaseler (Bainbridge Island, Wash.) and T. Park McRitchie (Port Clinton, Ohio).

Developmental Coach: Ben Glass
In 2007, Ben Glass (Seattle, Wash.) exhibited prolific capacities and talents as a coach by serving on all levels from junior sailing programs to the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Sailing. As the head coach of the 33-member Seattle Yacht Club Racing Team, he organized travel, logistics and transport for a summer of sailing across the Northwest.

His sailors won four of the five classes in the series. That year, he helped to organize the very first Northwest Junior Olympic Festival, and coached in at least eight junior national championships. Glass also traveled to the Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship in Kingston, ON, Canada as the U.S. team coach and his sailors Emily Dellenbaugh and Briana Provancha won the 29er fleet. In the fall of 2007, Glass was invited to the U.S. Olympic Team Trials to coach 49er pair Dalton Bergen and Zack Maxam, who came in second place.

In addition to his regatta coaching feats in 2007, Glass taught Level 1 Instructor Certification course, served as Principal Race Officer for local regattas, and coached at least four clinics. Glass' contributions to the sport are the keys to a better future for sailing and make him US SAILING's 2007 Developmental Coach of the Year.

Previous winners of sailing's Developmental Coach of the Year Award are Duffy Markham (Wellesley, Mass.), Tom Coleman (Hixson, Tenn.), Rob Hallawell (Marblehead, Mass./Coronado, Calif.), Brian Doyle (Darien, Conn./Hanover, N.H.), Amy Gross-Kehoe (Bayville, N.Y.), Adam Werblow (St. Mary's, Md.) and Mike Zani (Bristol, R.I.).

The goals of the USOC's Coaching Recognition Program are to recognize the accomplishments and contributions coaches make to sports at all levels of athlete development and to elevate the status of coaching as a profession.

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