Young Woman Sailor of the Year

Tampa, FL: Florida Women’s Sailing Association on the west coast of Florida has promoted women in
sailing since 1973. One of the most significant ways they promote women in sailing is through their
annual Young Woman Sailor of the Year Award. This prestigious award signifies both accomplishment
within the sport of sailing as well as a monetary award that helps the sailor continue their sailing career.

This year’s award is given to Kay Brunsvold of Sarasota, FL for her impressive abilities on the water.
Kay started her sailing career at Sarasota Youth Sailing and has been competitively sailing since 2013 in
many fleets including the Opti, Club 420s, multihulls, and Nacra 15 and F16. For Kay to achieve status
as a top female sailor, in 2019 she had to recover from a debilitating back surgery that kept her off the
water for over a year.

Kay planned and executed a complete personal training program that enabled her to achieve her goal of
representing the United States in the 2021 Youth Multi-Hull Worlds. She was one of three female multi-
hull skippers. Kay went from not being able to stand for 10 minutes to becoming the number one female
skipper in the world in the Narca 15.

Both on and off the water Kay is an impressive young woman. She graduated from Sarasota High School
in 2021. She is attending USF in the College of Mechanical Engineering program, with a 4.0 GPA, while
also competing and practicing on the varsity women’s sailing team. Her USF coach, Allison Jolly, noted
that Kay possesses the attributes required to drive the final one percent of individuals to the top. Her
interpersonal skills, attention to detail, work ethic, and positive attitude are just as crucial as her
athleticism. Kay qualified for the Nacra 15 Youth Worlds and then traveled to Oman to represent the US
where she and her crew won the Silver Medal, all during her first freshman semester at USF.
The FWSA sailor, from the Luffing Lassies in Sarasota, who nominated Kay noted that “she is a
remarkable young woman who has overcome challenging physical limitations to flourish as one of the
best female sailors in Florida.” Kay is a role model for young female sailors across the country and globe
and FWSA is proud to recognize her achievements and leadership. The FWSA members know that with
this award the organization is helping Kay to continue to do great things within the sailing community.

About FWSA: Founded in 1973 to promote and encourage the growth of women's sailing groups along
the West coast of Florida, the FWSA functions to:
Encourage the sport of women's interclub yacht racing.
Foster and encourage social fellowships pertaining to all things nautical between member clubs and
similar associations.
Improve communication between clubs.
Forward and advance sailing in all its phases through education and sailing clinics.
Promote and coordinate interclub, match team racing and other sailing events for and between its
members under uniform rules.
Currently there are ten member clubs with more than four hundred women racing once a week in their
respective sailing clubs on the Florida West Coast.  Membership is open and FWSA welcomes additional
sailing clubs. www.fwsa.net