St. Petersburg native is just second Floridian ever inducted
USF head coach is first-ever women’s Olympic gold medalist in sailing
Youngest woman ever to win the Yachtswoman of the Year Award
TAMPA, OCT. 30, 2019 – USF head sailing coach Allison Jolly will add another tremendous honor to a lifetime of achievement when she is inducted into the National Sailing Hall of Fame in Newport, R.I. on Nov. 9.
Jolly, the first-ever woman to win an Olympic gold medal in sailing, will become just the fifth woman and second-ever Floridian inducted into the Hall of Fame when she joins nine others in the Class of 2019.
“We are extremely proud of Allison not only for what she has accomplished across her tremendous career in sailing but for how she continues to teach, lead and develop student-athletes here at USF,” Vice President of Athletics Michael Kelly said.
Jolly, who was born and raised in St. Petersburg, Fla., was an All-American sailor at Florida State University and won the Women’s Collegiate National Championship in 1975 and 1976. She won two U.S. Women’s Sailing Championships, posted a runner-up finishes in the 1976 European Women’s Championships and the Timmy Angsten Regatta, and in 1977, at the age of 20, she became the youngest woman ever to win the Yachtswoman of the Year Award from the New York Yacht Club, “considered the top prize in yachting.”
“I am extremely humbled and honored to be placed in the company of so many men and women for which I have such enormous respect and that have had a tremendous impact on the great sport of sailing,” Jolly said. “I am proud to represent the strong sailing tradition of the city of St. Petersburg and the Tampa Bay area, and am blessed that sailing has been such an integral and much-loved part of my life from a very young age.”
Jolly and her crew, Lynne Jewell, were the first women to win a gold medal in sailing in the modern Olympic Games, which date to 1896. Jolly became the first gold-medal winning female skipper in history, as her and Jewell won in the waters off Pusan, South Korea the 1988 Olympic Games, and remain the only American women to win gold in the 470 Class.
To win the gold, Jolly made two daring calls in the seventh and final race. Sailing in 30-35 knot winds and rough seas, she first made the call to lower the jib and make a repair while navigating in treacherously huge waves. Next, with the wind howling at 35 knots, Jolly called for the spinnaker set, the only boat in the fleet to take the risk. The gamble and her skill sailing in high seas paid off as the boat made up for the time lost during the repair and finished high enough to claim gold.
Jolly continued racing for the next 10 years, winning championships in 470s and Fireballs. In 2010, she was elected as President of the US 470 Class Association.
Jolly is in her 15th season as the head coach of the USF sailing team. She has led the team to six appearances in the ICSA Women’s Singlehanded Nationals and 12 straight appearances in the ICSA Women’s Dinghy Nationals.
Jolly was inducted into the Florida Sports Hall of Fame in 2016. She will join Philip “Ed” Baird (inducted in 2016), also from St. Petersburg, as the second Florida-born member of the U.S. National Sailing Hall of Fame.
About USF Sailing
The USF sailing program has reached the national finals in seven of the last eight years. The Bulls finished in the top 10 during the 2012 and 2013 seasons. The sailing team is based out of St. Petersburg and led by head coach Allison Jolly, a former USA Olympian and 2016 Florida Sports Hall of Fame inductee.
Follow the team on social media (Twitter) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information.
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