As a champion of high school and club national regattas and representative of Team USA in international competitions, Katlia Sherman ’26 has exemplified global talent as a sailing skipper.
Sherman was first introduced to the sport of sailing at five years old when she visited her grandparents in Maine. There, she attended summer clinics with her older brother under the guidance of high school and collegiate student coaches and found her passion for sailing.
At 10 years old, Sherman moved onto competitive sailing with the California Yacht Club in Marina Del Rey, which increased her level of commitment, allowing her to gain valuable experiences and achieve greater success.
“At the time I was starting, I had other extracurricular activities including ballet and Taekwondo, so when I was around 12, I stopped those activities and put my focus into sailing,” Sherman said.
Two years ago, she participated in her first international race, the 420 World Championships in Alicante, Spain. She competed on the same team as her older brother, representing the United States in a pool of hundreds of young sailors from approximately 70 countries. Between the regattas, Sherman was able to trade Team USA gear with sailors from other countries and experience cross-cultural connections, despite language barriers.
“At the introductory ceremony at Worlds, everyone gets dressed up in their team polos and outfits,” Sherman said. “Each country in attendance has a flag and there is a march to mark the beginning of the competition.”
After yet another year of successful racing, Sherman qualified for the presitigous sailing competition 420 Europeans in Slovenia this past summer. Sherman arrived with her family and a new racing partner a week prior to the competition to prepare. The two teammates quickly learned how to work together before competing in the women’s category for five days of racing. Sherman said she loved this experience as she was not only able to compete in a different country, but also able to explore a new culture during her time separate from competition.
Sherman has not only found great success at international competitions, but has also excelled at the national level. At the start of the year, Sherman and her sailing partner participated in many national regattas in the 420 sailing class to earn points as the skipper, the driver of the boat and qualify for championship and international races. For local competitions, she arrives the day before as well as the morning of the regatta to prepare the boat and adjust measurements and weight to accommodate the weather.
Over Thanksgiving Break, Sherman competed in the Pacific Coast Championships in Long Beach and won first place. From her victory, Sherman received points that helped contribute to her ability to qualify for the I-420 nationals in Florida that she will be attending over Winter Break.
Sherman has made a lasting impact on the Marlborough community by using her passion for sailing to form a school sailing team during the 2023-24 school year with alumna Amelia Gasner ’24.
“Amelia was my partner at that time for the regular season, and we were both really advocating for a Marlborough team,” Sherman said. “We met with the athletics director, sent a lot of emails and got the team registered so we could compete.”
With three participants, the team combined with Bishop Montgomery and competed in two regattas. They won first place for the silver fleet in the Rose Bowl competition.
Sherman’s two Marlborough teammates graduated last year, both pursuing sailing in college. Sherman hopes to follow suit and continue her sailing career in college.
