U.S. Singlehanded Championship at Houston Yacht Club

by US Sailing 5 Jul 13:16 BST 29 June - 3 July 2018

Following three days of exciting racing on Galveston Bay, Malcolm Lamphere (Lake Forest, Ill.) became the 2018 U.S. Singlehanded Men's Champion and Hanne Weaver (Gig Harbor, Wash.) was named the 2018 U.S. Singlehanded Women's Champion. This year's U.S. Singlehanded Championship was run in conjunction with the Laser Class National Championships and hosted by the Houston Yacht Club. The fleets were comprised of experienced and proven singlehanded sailors and an influx of new talented young men and women.

There was no racing on Tuesday, the fourth and final day of the regatta, due to insufficient wind and an incoming afternoon storm.

Lamphere edged out the 2017 Champion Marek Zaleski (Norwalk, Conn.) by four points over nine races in the Laser event. Leo Boucher (West River, Md.) placed third overall. Lamphere, Zaleski and Boucher also finished first, second and third, respectively in the 35-boat Laser Class Nationals competition. Lamphere took the lead Saturday, the first day of racing, with three consecutive wins in races 1-3. Despite consistent top results from Zaleski, Lamphere was dominant from start to finish. He won seven of nine races.

U.S. Singlehanded Men's Championship Results: (top five)

1. Malcolm Lamphere, Lake Geneva YC/Chicago YC, 1-1-1-[7]-1-1-5-1-1-; 12pts
2. Marek Zaleski, Noroton YC, 3-2-2-[9]-2-2-1-2-2-; 16pts
3. Leo Boucher, Severn Sailing, [6]-3-3-3-3-4-2-3-5-; 26pts
4. Joseph Hou, NHYC/ABYC, 2-4-8-2-7-[9]-5/NCO*-6-7-; 41pts
5. Paul Didham, Mission Bay YC/West Coast Sailing, 8-[36/OCS]-4-10-4-3-8-4-8-; 49pts

For the second straight year, Weaver proved to be the top eligible Laser Radial sailor in the U.S. Singlehanded Women's Championship competition. She won by a single point over Lillian Myers (Sarasota, Fla.). Kelly Cole (Charleston, S.C.) took home third place honors over nine races. Weaver and Myers changed leads multiple times throughout the Championship. Ten of the 80 sailors in the Laser Radial event were eligible for this title. Weaver placed seventh overall in the Laser Radial Class Nationals.

U.S. Singlehanded Women's Championship Results: (top five)

1. Hanne Weaver, SYC/RVYC, 10-9-7-5-4-2-1-17-10-; 48pts
2. Lillian Myers, GCYSA, 4-10-9-2-5-4-13-16-2-; 49pts
3. Kelly Cole, OCBC, 3-14-12-13-8-10-14-29-22-; 96pts
4. Elizabeth Shanahan, Stamford YC/LYC, 17-8-16-19-11-9-32-37-24-; 136pts
5. Annika Fedde, Ventura YC, 15-21-13-11-11-11-37-35-36-; 153pts

As part of the Laser Class Nationals, Braun Guthrie (St. Petersburg, Fla.) won the Laser 4.7 event.

Sailors eligible for the U.S. Singlehanded Sailing Championships in the men's Laser Full Rig and women's Laser Radial events must have been U.S. citizens and at least turn 17 in the calendar year of 2018. These eligible sailors raced in their respective fleets as part of the Laser Nationals competition.

Prizes were awarded to competitors meeting the eligibility rules for the U.S. Singlehanded Championship:

• George D. O'Day Trophy to the overall highest placing eligible male in the Laser Full Rig for the U.S. Singlehanded Men's Championship.
• Helen Willis Hanley Trophy to the overall highest placing eligible female in the Laser Radial for the U.S. Singlehanded Women's Championship.
• US Sailing medals were awarded to the top three positions in each fleet.

For complete results and standings and more information about the 2018 U.S. Singlehanded Sailing Championships, please visit the event Website.