On January 20, UChicago was honored to host the annual Midwinters conference. Midwinters is the annual sailing administrative conference conducted by the Midwestern Collegiate Sailing Association (MCSA), our regional governing association. UChicago was honored to host the conference and awards banquet in Hyde Park this year, which was attended by more than 90 sailors from dozens of universities across the Midwest. UChicago Sailing was honored to host Midwinters this year, and we appreciated the opportunity to spend time with talented sailors from across the MCSA!

At the annual awards banquet, two UChicago sailors were recognized individually for their exceptional performance at regattas in the past year. Max Zhalilo ‘26 was honored as an All-Conference Open Skipper, and Claire Zhang ‘24 was recognized as an All-Conference Honorable Mention Women’s Crew. Congrats, Max and Claire!

Out sailors were likewise honored as the winners of the MCSA Match Race Championship trophy. Congratulations to Max Zhalilo ‘26, Natalie Manley ‘24, Claire Zhang ‘24, and Holden Higgins ‘24 for their exceptional performance at Match Racing Champs last fall. Our sailors won the midwestern match racing championship for the first time in UChicago history!

Our match racing team (From L to R: Max, Natalie, Claire, and Holden) celebrates a successful season!

And special congratulations are due to our co-Captain, Natalie Manley ‘24, who won the Gail M. Turluck Student Leadership Award! The Turluck award recognizes an undergraduate student leader who has made “significant contributions that will result in the long-term organizational improvement” of collegiate sailing. Of course no sailor was more deserving than our captain, Natalie — congratulations!

Natalie celebrates with the Gail M. Turluck Leadership Award