(Newport, RI)- The nominees will be reviewed by a panel of notable sailing journalists
who discuss the merits of each sailor’s racing results before voting to
determine US Sailing's 2014 Rolex Yachtsman and Yachtswoman of the
Year. The winners will be announced in mid-January and honored on
Thursday, February 26, 2015, during a luncheon at the New York Yacht
Club in Manhattan, when they will be presented with specially-engraved
Rolex timepieces.Many of the top nominees are past or present J/Sailors from the top J one-design classes (J/22, J/24, J/70, J/80). Of the ten contenders for Yachtsman of the Year, seven (70.0%!) have extensive sailing experience on J’s, including Etchells World Champion Bill Hardesty (San Diego, Calif.); J/70 World Champion Tim Healy (Jamestown, R.I.); Rolex Farr 40 World Champion Terry Hutchinson (Annapolis, Md.); J/80 World Champion Brian Keane (Weston, Mass.); Extreme Sailing Series Champion Morgan Larson (Santa Cruz, Calif.); ISAF Sailing World Cup 470 Men’s Bronze Medalist Stu McNay (Providence, R.I.); and J/24 World Champion Will Welles (Portsmouth, R.I.).
Of the seven contenders for Yachtswoman of the Year, five (71.0%!) have spent considerable time sailing J one-designs; including J/70 Worlds Corinthian Champion Heather Gregg-Earl (Boston, Mass.); ISAF Sailing World Cup 470 Women’s Bronze Medalist Anne Haeger (Lake Forest, Ill.); Etchells skipper Shannon Bush (Refugio, Texas); ICSA Women’s National Champion Deirdre Lambert (Cumberland, Maine); and US Women’s Match Racing Champion Stephanie Roble (East Troy, Wisc.).
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