Layline to LA28 will bring athletes, Olympians and supporters together at San Diego Yacht Club on Nov. 20 to help fund American sailing campaigns.
With the 2028 Olympic Games less than two years away, Southern California’s sailing community is preparing for more than the chance to watch the world’s best sailors compete on local waters. A volunteer-led effort is asking the community to help American athletes get there ready to compete.
Layline to LA28 is raising money for America One Racing’s Project Podium, which supports U.S. sailors pursuing Olympic campaigns. The effort will culminate in a fundraising evening Friday, Nov. 20, at San Diego Yacht Club, where guests will be able to meet sailors and coaches, see Olympic-class boats, and learn what it takes to campaign for the Games.
Olympic sailing is scheduled for waters off San Pedro and Long Beach in 2028. For Chris Snow, a Layline to LA28 co-chair, that makes the next two years a rare opportunity for local sailors to follow the athletes as they train, race and try to earn places on the U.S. team.
Two experienced campaigners with Southern California roots are Nevin Snow and Paris Henken. Both grew up in San Diego and learned to sail in Naples Sabots before going on to compete in college, Chris Snow said. Both were named college sailors of the year in their respective divisions, with Nevin receiving the honor twice. Henken began her Olympic campaign while still in college and competed at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro. Nevin started his campaign after graduating from Georgetown.
Today, Nevin Snow helms a 49er with Ian MacDiarmid, while Henken helms a 49erFX with Helena Scutt. Both teams are supported by Project Podium. At the recent San Pedro Olympic Classes Regatta, where international competitors raced on waters that will be used for LA28, Snow and MacDiarmid finished fifth in the men’s skiff fleet, and Henken and Scutt finished seventh in the women’s fleet.
“Both Nevin and Paris are at the very top of their respective fleets,” Chris Snow said. He sees them as Southern California sailors with the experience to contend for U.S. team berths and, potentially, medals. Henken and Scutt live in Long Beach. Scutt is married to Coronado native Hans Henken, who won bronze in the men’s 49er at the 2024 Paris Games.
Other local sailors are earlier in their campaigns. Snow pointed to the Janov brothers of Marina del Rey and the Nyenhuis brothers of San Diego, who are sailing 49ers, as teams to watch over the longer term. He also named Santa Barbara sailors Chris Kayda and Claire Holehouse, who are beginning a campaign in the mixed 470. Their paths illustrate how much time athletes can spend building experience before they reach an Olympic starting line.
Recent results elsewhere in the U.S. fleet have given Layline to LA28 organizers reason to build on that momentum. In September, America One Racing athlete Charlotte Rose won the ILCA 6 World Championship, while Noah Lyons took silver at the iQFOiL World Championship. Those achievements are significant steps for the athletes, though a world championship result does not itself secure an Olympic berth.
Project Podium is intended to help leading American prospects sustain that level of competition. Its support includes coaching, sports science, training and opportunities to compete internationally. Olympic campaigns also require boats and equipment, travel and the time to train at a level Snow said has become far more demanding since Los Angeles last hosted the Games in 1984.
“The U.S. Olympic sailing effort is in a unique situation compared to our international competition in that our sailors get no government funding,” Snow said. He pointed to the British sailing team’s support from the United Kingdom’s National Lottery as an example of the different funding models American sailors face. The U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee says it doesn’t receive federal funding for Olympic athletes or programs.
Snow said competing internationally now calls for training that’s practically full time, making financial support an essential part of an athlete’s campaign. Layline to LA28 says all money it raises for Project Podium will go toward supporting athletes. Its organizers, led by Chris and Mary Snow with yacht clubs and volunteers across the region, are seeking contributions from the Southern California sailing community.
That community is already contributing in other ways. According to Snow, clubs in the Los Angeles area are supplying personnel and support for sailing venues in Long Beach and San Pedro, and experienced local race officials will help run events. Yacht clubs can also open their facilities to visiting athletes who need places to train.
Support can begin much earlier than an Olympic campaign. Snow said encouragement for a young sailor might mean helping them travel to a regatta outside their home area, assisting with the purchase of a boat or welcoming them to train at a club. Those opportunities can help a promising junior sailor decide whether to pursue a larger goal.
“Going to the Olympics, or even trying to go, is about dreaming about a big goal to reach for,” Snow said. “Our Southern California sailing community needs to be encouraging of our young sailors who want to take on the challenge and support them in any way possible.”
The Nov. 20 gathering is designed to bring those forms of support together while putting faces to the campaigns. Paul Cayard, named the 2026 Rolex Yachtsman of the Year, is scheduled to emcee. A film by sailing broadcaster Gary Jobson will look at the past and future of U.S. Olympic sailing, and former medalists are expected to join current athletes, coaches and guests. The evening will conclude with a live auction and paddle raise for Project Podium.
Snow urged sailors who can attend to buy a ticket and those who cannot to consider a donation. For him, financial backing is the most pressing need as the strongest prospects prepare for competition two years away. At the same time, he hopes the Games will leave a lasting impression on young sailors who can see Olympic racing close to home.
“The world is coming to our backyard, and it’s important for our community to get out there and observe,” Snow said. He encouraged sailors to watch the competition with a young person alongside them. He also expects an Olympic test event in Long Beach and San Pedro in late August or early September 2027, which he described as an opportunity to visit the venues and meet sailors from the United States and abroad.
American sailing has a high mark to remember from the last Los Angeles Olympics: The United States won a medal in every sailing event in 1984. Snow said U.S. sailors have won only two sailing medals across the past four Games. He believes those results affect how young Americans see the possibilities in competitive sailing, and that stronger support now could help change its future.
A conversation with Newport Beach sailor and coach Dave Ullman has stayed with Snow. Ullman told him that an Olympic medal carries meaning even to someone who has never followed a sailing world championship or national title. With the Games returning to Southern California, Snow hopes local sailors will help the athletes pursuing that recognition and take the chance to be inspired by them.
“I hope the Southern California sailing community can support our sailors training to represent us and be inspired by them,” Snow said.
The Layline to LA28 fundraising celebration is Friday, Nov. 20, at San Diego Yacht Club. Reservations and additional information are available through Layline to LA28 at www.layline2la28.org, and information about the athletes is available through America One Racing at www.americaoneracing.us.
