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• U.S Paralympic Team Continues Winning Streak
  
  It was another successful day for Team USA today, with two teams each winning two out of their three races. Nick Scandone (Newport Beach, Calif.) and Maureen McKinnon-Tucker (Marblehead, Mass.) are enjoying the view from the top in the 11-boat SKUD-18 class, after grabbing two bullets and a third place finish today. After also winning two races today, John Ruf (Pewaukee, Wis.) now sits in second place in the 2.4 mR, only one point shy away from the leader, Canada.
  
  
• Paralympic Sailing Regatta Day 1: Despite Challenging Conditions, USA Wins Races
  
  Team USA proved their prowess on the water with two bullets and a second place today, despite challenging conditions on the first day of racing at the 2008 Paralympic Sailing Regatta. Nick Scandone (Newport Beach, Calif.) and Maureen McKinnon-Tucker (Marblehead, Mass.) battled out the conditions, which worsened as the day progressed, to grab a bullet and a second place in their first two races to claim the lead in the new SKUD-18 class. The Sonar team of Rick Doerr (Clifton, N.J.), Tim Angle (Marblehead, Mass.) and Bill Donohue (Brick, N.J.) also won their first race today, beating Greece by almost eight boat lengths. John Ruf (Pewaukee, Wis.) also excelled in the 2.4 mR class with impressive second and sixth place finishes.
  
  
• 2008 U.S. Paralympic Sailing Team Ready to Race
  
  The U.S. Paralympic Sailing Team has spent countless hours on and off the water competing, training and campaigning for this pinnacle event: the 2008 Paralympic Games in Qingdao, China. Held in the same venue as the Olympic Sailing Regatta last month, the Paralympic Regatta has attracted an unprecedented 80 elite athletes from 26 countries. Starting Monday, September 8, eleven races are scheduled for each event over five days. Medals will be awarded on the final day of racing, Saturday, September 13.
  
  
• Anna Tunnicliffe and Zach Railey Interview with NBC
  
  
  
  
• Olympic Medalists to Appear on The Oprah Winfrey Show
  
  Olympic sailing medalists Anna Tunnicliffe and Zach Railey are scheduled to appear on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” on Monday, September 8.
  
  
• Weather Forecast from Jennifer Lilly: 96% in the Shade
  
  Heading for the boat park this morning, the first sign of humidity was the hotel lobby door. The glass was dripping with condensation, signaling the faint of heart to take one last deep breath of air conditioning. Upon walking into to this “crisp,” Qingdao morning, sunglasses fogged for a quick few transitional seconds, and we entered the hot zone. It’s actually not that hot (about 80 degrees F) but the humidity is mildly shocking. In the boat park this morning, Tornado skipper Johnny Lovell realized, “I must have made a mistake this morning. I ran outside, and now even after a cold shower I still can’t cool off.” He immediately slipped into a cooling vest. These vests are strapped with ice packs and unfortunately Johnny happened to grab the one that looked like a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, but at least he’s cooling off.
  
  
• Disabled Sailors to Compete in Qingdao International Regatta
  
  Portsmouth, R.I. (May 7, 2008)- Ten members of the US Disabled Sailing Team AlphaGraphics have landed in Qingdao, China, and are preparing for five days of racing at the International Association For Disabled Sailing (IFDS) Qingdao International Regatta. The U.S. has sent five of its top-ranked teams to this May 11-15 event: in the Sonar, the Paralympic team of Rick Doerr (Clifton, N.J.), Tim Angle (Marblehead, Mass.), and Bill Donohue (Brick, N.J.) will race, as well as the second-ranked team led by Paul Callahan (Providence, R.I.) with Mike Hersey (Hyannis, Mass.) and Roger Cleworth (Lithia, Fla.) as crew. In the SKUD 18, Scott Whitman (Brick, N.J.) and Julia Dorsett (Westchester, Penn.) will represent the United States, as the Paralympic team of Nick Scandone (Newport Beach, Calif.) and Maureen McKinnon-Tucker (Marblehead, Mass.) will not attend due to scheduling conflicts. Competing in the 2.4mR are John Ruf (Pewaukee, Wis.) and Marc LeBlanc (New Orleans, La.), ranked first and second respectively. US Disabled Sailing Team AlphaGraphics members who sit first in the rankings have qualified to compete in the Paralympic Games in September, also in Qingdao, China.
  
  
• What Defines an Olympic Sailor? Notes from Team Psychologist Dr. Jerry May
  
  Sailors tend to refer to this unique sport as a regular sport plus chess. The mental aspect of the game requires a certain perception and intelligence, and just like any other Olympic-level sport, the mental side also can balance on a sensitive line between just plain pressure and directed motivation. Dr. Jerry May founded the USOC’s sports psychology program in 1977, and has been working with the U.S. Olympic Sailing Team since just after the 1992 Games. He spent thirteen years with US Alpine Ski Team, but he has also worked with non-traditional sports like competitive rock-drilling. After sixteen years with the U.S. Olympic Sailing Team, Dr. May is familiar with the defining characteristics of sailors.
  
  
• What Defines an Olympic Sailor? Fitness Notes from the PET
  
  For the 2008 Qingdao Games, the US SAILING Team AlphaGraphics has delivered the fittest group of USA sailors to ever hit the Olympics. The overall level of athleticism in Olympic sailing has been raised in the past quad and our Performance Enhancement Team (PET) has been extended to keep up with, and push, that change. Trainers have been working with USA windsurfers since 1992, and by now the team has developed into a full armada including a Doctor, Psychologist, Nutritionist, and four physical therapists.
  
  
• What Defines an Olympic Sailor? Nutrition Notes from Lisa Dorfman
  
  Sailors have been ramping up their workouts and trimming down their diets in preparation for the light winds in Qingdao. A few sailors on the U.S. team have noticed that some competitors have gone overboard with the weight loss. Looking at the bikinis and barebacks in the boat park there are ribs and collarbones sticking out like never before, but the USA’s goal is to accomplish healthy weight loss while preserving muscle and stamina.
  
  
• Sailing Under the American Flag
  
  The eighteen sailors of the U.S. Olympic Sailing Team have spent their lives as numbers sailing in a sea of more numbers. In their racing events they are spotted by the identifying digits on their sail. For example, the USA Yngling is “337.” But at the Olympics, they drop their numbers and gain new identities. They become “the Americans” sailing in a cosmopolitan sea of flags. Men’s 470 skipper Stu McNay explains, “In past Olympics I’ve always seen the flags and that’s one of the coolest parts: To spectate and find your country.” Now it’s his turn. “I want to be a part of that, where people can identify me as that American boat.”
  
  
• Nick Scandone Fighting to Compete in Beijing
  
  
  
  
• U.S. Paralympic Team Leads Two Classes, Despite Light Air
  
  Light and variable air forced extremely tight racing today in the Paralympic Regatta, but Nick Scandone (Newport Beach, Calif.) and Maureen McKinnon-Tucker (Marblehead, Mass.) and John Ruf (Pewaukee, Wis.) sailed well and ended the day leading the SKUD-18 and 2.4 mR classes, respectively. After three hour postponements, sailors were finally able to get in one out of three scheduled races today, but it was more like a crawl than a race.
  
  
• Nick Scandone Featured in USA Today
  
  
  
  
• Scandone and McKinnon-Tucker Clinch Gold
  
  Nick Scandone (Newport Beach, Calif.) and Maureen McKinnon-Tucker (Marblehead, Mass.) clinched the gold medal in the SKUD-18 fleet Friday with two races left to go in the Paralympic regatta. The unstoppable team won two more races today, strengthening their substantial nine-point lead ahead of their competitors. John Ruf (Pewaukee, Wis.) sits in second place in the 2.4 mR fleet, while the Sonar team of Rick Doerr (Clifton, N.J.), Tim Angle (Marblehead, Mass.) and Bill Donohue (Brick, N.J.), had their single best racing day of the regatta today.
  
  
• Team USA Wins Gold, Bronze Medals
  
  2.4 mR sailor John Ruf (Pewaukee, Wis.) added a Bronze Medal to the U.S. Paralympic Team’s medal count today, joining Gold Medalists Nick Scandone (Newport Beach, Calif.) and Maureen McKinnon-Tucker (Marblehead, Mass.) on the podium at the 2008 Paralympic Regatta. Rick Doerr (Clifton, N.J.), Tim Angle (Marblehead, Mass.) and Bill Donohue (Brick, N.J.) finished eighth in the competitive Sonar class.
  
  
• Kenneth Andreasen Named New High Performance Director of Olympic Sailing
  
  Kenneth Andreasen (Tampa, Fla.) has been named the new High Performance Director of the Olympic Sailing Program, US SAILING, national governing body for the sport, announced today. His responsibilities will include managing all on-the-water elements of the Olympic and Paralympic Sailing Programs and enabling sailors to reach the highest level of competition for the next Olympic and Paralympic quadrenniums. Andreasen joins Chairman Dean Brenner (Wallingford, Conn.) and Olympic Director Katie Kelly (Barrington, R.I.) on the executive team.
  
  
• 2009 Youth World Qualifier Regatta NOR
  
  The Notice of Race for the 2009 US SAILING International Sailing Federation (ISAF) Youth World Qualifier and U.S. Youth Multihull Championship Regatta has been posted online, US SAILING announced today. Hosted by the Alamitos Bay Yacht Club of Long Beach, Calif., the regatta will be held from January 17-19, 2009.
  
  
• Nick Scandone Profiled in NBC Documentary
  
  Celebrated sailor Nick Scandone (Newport Beach, Calif.), who won a gold medal with teammate Maureen McKinnon-Tucker (Marblehead, Mass.) in the SKUD-18 class at the 2008 Paralympic Sailing Regatta in Qingdao, China, will be profiled in a documentary airing on NBC on Sunday, November 9 at 2:30 p.m. ET/11:30 a.m. PT. (Check local listings.) Narrated by NBC Sports' Bob Costas, this 90-minute documentary will feature eight Paralympic athletes, including Scandone, as well as the Men’s Wheelchair Basketball Team.
  
  
• 2009 Youth Pipeline
  
  US SAILING’s Olympic Sailing Committee (OSC) is proud to announce a new Olympic sailing training pipeline, which will help guide talented sailors from youth programs to the U.S. Olympic Sailing Program. As part of the new pipeline, the OSC will launch two new teams in 2009: The US Sailing Team – U18 (Under 18) and US Sailing Team – U23 (Under 23).
  
  
• 2010 Youth World Qualifier
  
  US SAILING’s Olympic Sailing Committee announced today the equipment for the 2010 US SAILING International Sailing Federation (ISAF) Youth World Qualifier, which will be held January 16-18, 2010 at Clearwater Yacht Club in Clearwater, Florida.