Blair Belling (Newport Beach, Calif.) crews for Thomas Barrows (St. Thomas, USVI), a graduating senior from Yale University, who has been named the 2010 ICSA College Sailor of the Year.

2010 College Sailor of the Year – Thomas Barrows (St. Thomas, USVI), a graduating senior from Yale University (New Haven, Conn.) and four-time recipient of ICSA All-American Honors (2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010), has been named the ICSA's 2010 College Sailor of the Year.

Barrows was recognized for his numerous wins in A-Division over the course of the 2009-2010 season, which, when combined with the scores from B-Division, earned Yale the overall win at the Harry Anderson Trophy , the Nevins Trophy, the Danmark Trophy and the Old Guard Regatta for the Owen Trophy. He was first in A-Division at the Truxtun Umsted Intersectional at which Yale finished fifth overall, and he placed third at the ICSA/Laser Performance Men's Singlehanded National Championship. At the beginning of May he finished second in A-Division at the ICSA National Championship Western Semi-Finals, the event which qualified Yale to advance to the finals of the most important event of the college sailing year – the ICSA/Gill National Championship. At that event, held June 1-3, Barrows skippered to fifth in A-Division with the Bulldogs finishing sixth in the overall standings.

The review panel noted that "his wins were sometimes by a wide margin, combined with a strong team race record, and he had a level of consistency over a large record that was astonishing."

"I never expected it to tell you the truth," the soft-spoken Barrows remarked about receiving the College Sailor of the Year Award. "I was nominated last year, but it [the award] was never really a goal of mine. I set more of a goal to win each individual event. . . it was never about winning the award, but more about wining as a team."

Barrows grew up in St. Thomas and was on-the-water cruising with his parents before learning to sail through the junior program at St. Thomas Yacht Club. Introduced to soccer at a very young age, he lettered in high school and was the team's leading scorer, while also playing volleyball and basketball. "I really enjoy competing," he said.

Since his arrival at Yale in 2006 Barrows has been a key player and was named Team Captain in 2008 and 2009. He won the 2007 Laser North American Championship and competed at the 2007 Pan American Games in Brazil, placing ninth overall. He represented the US Virgin Islands in China at the 2008 Olympic Games, finishing 21st out of 43 competing nations in the Laser class.

Barrows thanked a number of people during the awards presentation and later explained that it was the help he received along the way that took him far in sailing. "It was great as a freshman to have a crew [Abigail Coplin, who crewed for Barrows his first two years at Yale] who could teach me about boat trim and boat handling. I was more of a Laser sailor in high school and she showed me the ropes. I thanked Blair Belling, who I sailed with for the last two years, and also Marla Menninger who has been heavy air crew and my crew in everything outside of college sailing."

At age 12 Barrows met Zach Leonard, Yale's Director of Sailing, when the latter spent four months in St. Thomas. Leonard had a significant influence on Barrows, especially after he left the island. "We weren't sure what path to take, coaches to hire, events to enter. Zach was always very helpful in giving guidance, and pushing me to do well in school. I never thought about going to an Ivy, but he showed me that that was a realistic goal and I really fell in love with Yale when I came to visit. I'll always feel indebted to him for allowing me to have this experience."

Barrows majored in Sociology and thinks he may become a professional sailor in the future. His immediate plans, however, are to represent the USVI again in the Laser, this time at the 2012 Olympic Games. With that goal in mind, this summer he will be in the thick of international competition starting with the XXI Central American & Caribbean Sports Games in Puerto Rico, followed by Skandia Sail for Gold and the Laser World Championships, both in England. In the fall, he will return to New Haven as an assistant coach for the Bulldogs.

"It [the award] means a lot to me, but mostly it means that it puts the Yale program back on the map as one of the top teams in college sailing," concluded Barrows. "Sailing only became a varsity sport in 2004 and since then the program has really taken off and had a lot of success. So wining this award is representative of how the program has developed into a great program. In sailing it is easy to recognize one person, but past team members have done well and not gotten rewarded. I’ve learned from some of them and I wouldn’t be here without them today."

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