Palma, Spain: U.S. Coast Guard LTJG Nikole Barnes and Lara Dallman-Weiss, Team Perfect Vision Sailing, have qualified to represent the USA in the Women’s 470 at the next Olympic Test Event, August 17 to 22, 2019, in Enoshima Yacht Harbour, in Japan. The duo did so by finishing 20th out of a 45-boat fleet at the Trofeo Princesa Sofia Iberostar regatta, sailed April 1 to 6, in Palma, Spain. What’s more, Barnes and Dallman-Weiss placed 15, 16 and 25 scoreboard slots higher, respectively, than the three other USA Women’s 470 teams.

“The regatta was a good chance for us to see where we are with our training,” says LTJG Barnes, a 2017 graduate of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, whose campaign is strongly supported by the U.S. Coast Guard Alumni Association. LTJG Barnes is currently stationed at U.S. Coast Guard Sector Miami. “At the end of the day, we were able to attain and maintain great boat speed. We always have more to work on, but I am so happy with the progress our team has made. We are excited to be the USA representatives in the Women’s 470 in Japan in August for the Olympic Test Event.”

Dallman-Weiss adds, “This regatta was significant as April marks one year that the two of us have sailed together. For this event, we worked hard beforehand to learn the venue and prepare for the different conditions that we did find during the week. Come race day, we stuck to the plan we had made and kept everything really simple. Palma was a great way for our team to start the European racing season and we are very excited to continue to build on what we’ve learned.”

Japan’s Enoshima Yacht Harbour is the venue for the sailing competition for the 2020 Summer Olympics. The coastal city is located 36 miles southwest of Tokyo. While the USA still needs to quality as a country in the Women’s 470 for the 2020 Games, this qualification is a significant hurdle jumped for LTJG Barnes and Dallman-Weiss on the way to achieving this goal.

Next up, LTJG Barnes and Dallman-Weiss will compete in the 2019 World Cup Series – Round 3, Genoa, April 15 to 21, in Genoa, Italy. They will be coached by Robby Bisi.

“Our ability to provide LTJG Barnes the opportunity to pursue her goal of representing our nation in the 2020 Olympics is just one example of the Service’s efforts to develop and retain the talented women and men who make up the U.S. Coast Guard’s Total Workforce,” says RADM Bill Kelly ‘87, Assistant Commandant for Human Resources. “Providing her the ability to train full time is indicative of our dedication to our people and our Service to ensure we have a workforce prepared to meet the needs of the Nation.”

LTJG Barnes is a native of St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, and member of both the St. Francis Yacht Club and St. Thomas Yacht Club. Dallman-Weiss is a native of Shoreview, MN, and member of the New York Yacht Club.
To support LTJG Barnes and Dallman Weiss, donate to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy Alumni Association’s Elite Athletic Excellence Fund (www.cgaalumni.org/eliteathlete).

For more information about LTJG Barnes and Dallman Weiss’ Olympic campaign, visit www.perfectvisionsailing.com or Email: [email protected]. Follow on Facebook www.facebook.com/perfectvisionsailing and Instagram @perfectvisionsailing