For Immediate Release
July 7, 2023
Optimist US National Team Announces 2023-24 Performance Director
North Kingstown, Rhode Island – The United States Optimist Dinghy Association is excited to announce Manny Resano has been appointed the 2023-24 US National Team Performance Director. With over three decades involvement at the International Optimist Class that includes coaching IODA North American, South American & World Champions, Resano’s proven skills in developing youth sailor-athletes in the United States and around the world will be the critical foundation for supporting the next generation of American sailing stars.
Legendary coach Gonzalo “Bocha” Pollitzer will serve as the USNT’s International Coaching Advisor. An original OptiSailors Team coach, Pollitzer has coached two IODA World Champion Triple Crown winning teams– Fleet Racing, Team Racing & Miami Herald Trophy – with Argentina and Puerto Rico. In addition, he coached the Tokyo Olympics Medal Race winner in the 49er FX, and has also coached World titles in both the Laser/ILCA and 29er. Bocha is currently managing the very successful DinghyCoach Sailing Center in Lanzarote, Canary Islands.
“I have been coaching in the United States since 2003, most recently with West Coast class development,” said Resano. “I know the sailors, I know the coaches, and I’m excited to have the support of Bocha to bring the legendary OptiSailors model of collaboration, holistic skills development and long termperformance success to American sailor-athletes.”
Resano is not just a winning coach, but was also an accomplished Opti racer as well with a top-5 Worlds finish to his credit. With his targeted, collaborative approach, Resano will focus on not just improving the direction of sailor-athlete development, but also creating new synergies for local coach development and involvement in the Optimist pipeline. With an understanding of not just the Optimist world, but also what comes next, Resano will set a course for the USNT that will prepare our sailor-athletes to achieve success at the youth, collegiate and Olympic levels when they graduate from the Optimist.
Full US National Team scheduling will be announced shortly, with a planned first training block over the Labor Day Weekend in Annapolis, MD.
USNT Chair Sarah Chin