ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Leo Boucher ’23 (West River, Md./South River) claimed the Glen S. Foster Trophy for the second time in his career Sunday afternoon as the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA) Men’s Singlehanded National Champion. Boucher put up a 27-point victory at the two-day 2021 ICSA Men’s Singlehanded Nationals hosted by the Severn Sailing Association in conjunction with the U.S. Naval Academy.
“Leo works incredibly hard all year to be able to compete at this level. He has now become one of only five men to win this championship multiple times,” Director of Sailing Bill Ward said.
Boucher brought home the Foster Trophy back in 2019 as a sophomore when he edged Richard McCann ’22 of the University of Miami, 65-68, for his first ICSA singlehanded national championship title. As a first-year, he earned the George Griswold Trophy as the national runner-up. Boucher then took a gap year from St. Mary’s College in 2020-21 and was unable to defend his 2019 title.
This is the 17th national college sailing title in the history of St. Mary’s College sailing.
“It was great to win this weekend at the ICSA singlehanded nationals hosted by my home organization, SSA. Happy that so many people that I grew up sailing with and that have taught me so much over the years were able to be there watching,” Boucher stated. “My Dad was out watching which I know made him happy.”
Sunday provided another great day of racing with the wind coming out of the north/northeast all day, starting in the teens subsiding throughout the day with puffs, shifts, and waves. Six races were sailed on the day with Boucher never relinquishing the lead he gained after the third race on Saturday. He won Race 10 and finished second in Races 9 and 13, gradually increasing his lead to double-digits after Race 11. Boucher notched 10 top-three finishes over the two days of competition.
“Especially thankful to Coach Bill Ward for helping me keep levelheaded throughout the event. It was easy to get sidetracked by how cold it was and how hard the sailing was,” Boucher explained. “He helped me keep my eyes on the prize.”
Boucher took over the lead in the third race and never looked back, finishing atop of the first-day standings with 25 points and a two-point lead over eight races. He crossed the finish line in the top-five in all but one race, winning Race 6 and coming in second in Races 1 and 5.
Hobart College’s Charles Carraway ’22 (27 pts), Georgetown University’s Thomas McCann ’22 (46 pts), the defending national singlehanded champion, and Brown University’s Connor Nelson ’24 (48 pts) were fast on Boucher’s heels in second, third, and fourth, respectively.
Saturday racing occurred in the Chesapeake Bay, just past Greenbury Point, with near-perfect racing conditions as winds blew in from the northeast at 8-18 knots. A good number of puffs and shifts, as well as currents and waves, allowed for tight racing all day.
“The consistency of Leo’s performance (with his worst race being amazingly a sixth) in an extremely accomplished field of 18 competitors in shifty breezes is a remarkable achievement and is directly responsible for the mammoth 27-point win,” Head Coach Adam Werblow added.
Between November 25 and December 5, Boucher will represent Team USA at the first-ever Junior Pan American Games in Cali, Colombia. Sailing is one of 39 events featured at the inaugural Junior Pan American Games for athletes in the Americas aged 18 to 22. Boucher will compete in the one-person dinghy: International Laser Class Association – Standard (ICLA7).