Young sailors from the King Harbor Yacht Club/King Harbor Youth Foundation showcased their seamanship with impressive performances at the 2013 Junior Olympic Regatta that resulted in three top-ten finishes in the CFJ class of 34 boats.
Hosted by the Newport Harbor Yacht Club, the event was won by recent Mira Costa High School graduate Joseph Schiff, 18, and Kyle Collins, 14, who is entering his freshman year at South Torrance.
Sixteen-year-olds Geoffrey St. John and Adam Aguirre finished in 5th place. Both sailors will be juniors this fall at Mira Costa and South Torrance, respectively.
A pair of Sea Hawks sailed to a 6th-place finishing when Emi Stephanoff and Hailey Smith were edged by their King Harbor teammates. Stephanoff will be beginning her prep career at Redondo Union while Smith will be entering her junior year.
Mira Costa sophomore Peter Neal finished 9th out of 20 in the Laser Radial class.
“The Junior Olympic Regatta provided great competition for the kids and anybody could have won it,” King Harbor Coach Brandon Folkman said. “It took a flawless performance and Joe and Kyle were the most consistent on the water.”
Folkman said the King Harbor Youth Program is experience a growth period with more kids enrolling each year.
“We draw a lot of kids from the Junior Lifeguard program that come over after their training sessions,” Folkman said. “The kids get to know each other and hang out together all day.”
Founded in 1982, the King Harbor Youth Foundation is a non-profit corporation created to promote youth sailing in Southern California. Open to children 8 years old and up, the program provides access to the sport of sailing to local girls and boys of all backgrounds in order to build self-esteem, teamwork and a respect for the environment.
For more information, visit khyf.org.
