Pacific Palisades Teen Will Sail For U.S. In Youth World Contest

PACIFIC PALISADES, CA — A Pacific Palisades native will represent the United States at the 2021 Youth Sailing World Championships in Oman this December.

Katharine Doble of Pacific Palisades is one of 16 athletes chosen by US Sailing. Doble will compete in the "female one person dinghy" event at the 50th annual competition, which will run from Dec. 11-18 in Al-Mussanah, Oman.

America's team is made up of athletes, all under age 19, from throughout the country – stretching from Hawaii to the West Coast, Midwest, East Coast and Gulf Coast.

Members will travel with team leader Phil Muller – who was named US Sailing Developmental Coach of the Year in 2020 – and two other coaches.

"Youth Worlds is a really special event as it showcases the best youth talent worldwide," Muller said in a statement on the US Sailing website. "The team’s impressive geographic spread is a testament to the strength of our nation’s commitment to youth sailing as well as the regional programs and coaches who committed to the growth and development of these athletes and the support they provided to help them reach the top of their field."

The annual competition was canceled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, and Olympic Development Director Leandro Spina said the United States will return with a " very strong team."

"We have new faces and new talent on the team and we’ll be welcoming FormulaKite (a European kiteboarding competition) to the lineup of classes for the first time in Youth Worlds history," Spina said.