Winners crowned at Chubb U.S. Junior Championship

2022 Chubb U.S. Junior Sailing Championships © US Sailing

Friday saw the close of the Chubb Junior Championship in Macatawa, MI, consisting of the U.S. Junior Triplehanded, Doublehanded, and Singlehanded Championships. Junior sailors from across the country qualified for the championship at Area Qualifier regattas earlier in the year, ensuring a tight fleet at the finals.

Racing conditions on Lake Michigan were excellent. The first race day saw moderate winds around 10 kts and light choppy seas, and the second race day was a windy 15-20 kts with large waves. The third and final race day started with no wind, but winds built to about 5 knots with one race sailed in each fleet.

A testament to the depth of competition, sailors from over half of the eleven areas in US Sailing took home trophies, and none of the three class winners was decided until the final race.?

"The quality of competition we saw this week shows the importance of this championship to the junior sailing community in the US," said US Sailing Junior Championship Chair Matt Dubois. "The?skill level?exhibited across the board and the speed at which these junior sailors picked up the nuances of the VX One sportboats they were racing in the Sears fleet impressed even the adult veteran owners of the boat."

Sears Cup - Junior Triplehanded Championship

For the Sears Cup, sailed in the VX One, the Hawaiian team of Makani Andrews, Bryce Huntoon and Noelani Velasco had a consistent event, taking first place with 17 points. Houston Yacht Club's squad of Hamilton Barclay, Hayden McCready and Kailey Warrior took second with 21 points. The Noroton Yacht Club squad of Thomas O'Grady, Maxwell Connor and Emmet Ennico rounded out the podium in third with 28 points.

Bemis Trophy - Junior Doublehanded Championship

The Bemis Trophy, sailed in the c420, was won by the Newport Beach team of Reade Decker and Sophia Mulvania who overcame a UFD in the first race to claim the title with 23 total points. Christopher Chwalk and Claire Lewis of Barrington Yacht Club took second with 29 points, while Jacob Posner and Levi Bailey of Seattle Yacht Club came in third with 33 points.

Smythe Trophy - Junior Singlehanded Championship

The Smythe trophy, sailed in the ILCA 6, was won by Lucas Tenrreiro of Cedar Park, TX who finished the event with 25 points. Dieter Creitz of Seattle Yacht Club came in a close second with 27 points, while Tate Christopher of Alamitos Bay Yacht Club rounded out the podium in third place with 32 points.

Additionally, the sportsmanship and shipshape awards are very important to the event, encouraging friendly competition between young sailors and regions.

Sportsmanship winners:

• F. Gardner Cox Trophy, Sears Cup Sportsmanship Award - LJ Nykamp
• Sears Cup Shipshape Award - Area E team?Daniel Van Heeckeren / Kellie Keane / Annika Vanderhorst
• Bemis Sportsmanship Award - Spencer Fleming
• Faye Bennett Trophy, Smythe Sportsmanship Award - Mallory Dietsch

US Sailing would like to thank Chubb Insurance, the Gowrie Group, and Gill Marine for their support of the Chubb U.S. Junior Championship.

Full results available here.