Purdue and Michigan Deliver a Championship Battle at Toms River
PURDUE AND MICHIGAN DELIVER A
CHAMPIONSHIP BATTLE AT TOMS RIVER
The 2026 WASZP National High School and College Championships delivered exactly what the class hoped they would become: real school-based title fights, hosted by a club that understands both high-performance sailing and the community that makes it possible.
This year’s championships at Toms River Yacht Club brought together qualified high school and college sailors from across the country after a season of regional qualifying, long road trips, early-season training, and a growing sense that school-based Dinghy Foiling in North America is no longer an idea waiting to happen. It is here.
The high school and college sailors all raced together on the same course, creating one competitive fleet while also recognizing separate championship titles. That format gave every sailor the chance to line up against the strongest group possible, while still allowing the class to crown both a High School National Champion and a College National Champion.
At the center of the college championship was a compelling battle between Purdue University and the University of Michigan for the title of 2026 WASZP National College Champion. Christopher Draper, representing Purdue, and Alden Gort, representing Michigan, came into the championship with the speed, confidence, and competitive edge needed to win. Both sailors had already shown they could take bullets. Both had the ability to handle a wide range of conditions. Both wanted to bring the trophy back to campus.
At the same time, the high school title was being decided within the same fleet. Jack Deblinger emerged as the top high school sailor, winning the 2026 WASZP High School National Championship title after qualifying for the event and proving he could compete in the same demanding conditions as the college sailors.
By the end of the weekend, two champions had been crowned. Alden Gort and the University of Michigan prevailed in the college championship, making Gort the 2026 WASZP National College Champion. Jack Deblinger won the high school division and is the 2026 WASZP High School National Champion.
Both titles were earned the hard way.
The championship began on Friday under beautiful sunshine, with sailors arriving at Toms River Yacht Club to rig, tune, test, and prepare. The afternoon test sail gave everyone the chance to check systems, adjust gear, and settle into the venue before racing began. The USFoil trailer was on site throughout the weekend with spare parts, support equipment, the Vakaros RaceSense system, and USFoil Head Coach Agustin Ferrario helping sailors and programs get the most out of the event.
It was exactly the kind of setup the class wants to provide at major championships. The goal is not simply to run a regatta. The goal is to create an environment where college sailors, high school sailors, coaches, families, and host clubs can see what the future of Dinghy Foiling looks like when the right boats, coaching, race management, equipment, and support all come together.
Toms River Yacht Club once again showed why it has become such an important venue for the WASZP class. The club was prepared, welcoming, and professional from the moment sailors arrived. Food, logistics, volunteers, race officials, support teams, and shoreside hospitality were all delivered at the level sailors have come to expect from Toms River. The club has the water, the people, and the experience to host high-performance events, and it showed all weekend.
Saturday, however, was not interested in making things easy.
The breeze built into a brutal test, with gusts reaching 39 knots on the race course. Even on the relatively protected waters of the river, the conditions were marginal and demanding. The challenge was not just straight-line speed. It was judgment.
Sailors had to decide when to tack, when to gybe, when to keep the boat moving, and when survival was the fastest option. In 30-knot shifts, staying on the foils was its own discipline. Boat speeds were understandably impressive, but the sailors who succeeded were the ones who balanced aggression with control. Every maneuver mattered. Every bearaway, tack, gybe, and rounding had consequences.
Despite the conditions, the race committee and sailors managed to complete three races. That alone was a major accomplishment. It also gave both championships their first real shape.
Draper and Gort both showed why they were title contenders in the college championship. They were fast, composed, and willing to push in conditions that left very little room for error. Purdue and Michigan were not simply represented at the top of the results sheet. They were actively fighting for the national title.
Deblinger was also building his championship in the same conditions. For a high school sailor to compete on the same course, in the same breeze, against the same fleet, and come away as the top qualified high school competitor says a great deal about both his performance and the direction of the class.
Sunday brought a very different test.
The breeze was lighter, shiftier, and more tactical. After Saturday’s high-speed survival racing, Sunday gave the fleet a chance to show a broader range of skills. Sailors who had been hanging on in the big breeze found opportunities in the shifts, starts, boat handling, and tactical decisions. The weekend became more complete because of it.
That mix of conditions is what makes a national championship meaningful. Saturday rewarded courage, composure, and high-wind control. Sunday rewarded patience, awareness, and the ability to connect the dots around the course. Across the two days, the sailors had to prove they could do more than go fast. They had to race.
For Purdue and Michigan, the championship remained close and compelling. Draper had the speed to win races. Gort had the consistency and execution to close the event. Both sailors took bullets. Both kept the pressure on. Both represented their universities and the class at a high level.
In the high school championship, Deblinger did what every champion has to do. He handled the big breeze, stayed competitive as the conditions changed, and finished the event as the top high school sailor in the fleet. His title is an important milestone for the school-based WASZP pathway and a clear sign that the next generation of Dinghy Foiling talent is already here.
In the end, Alden Gort from the University of Michigan did enough to take the college title. His performance across the weekend made him the 2026 WASZP National College Champion and gave Michigan a championship victory in one of the fastest-growing areas of college sailing.
Christopher Draper and Purdue pushed the fight all the way through the event and showed that the championship was not going to be handed to anyone. That battle between Purdue and Michigan is exactly what the class hoped this event would produce. Real school pride. Real racing. Real stakes. A real national championship.
Jack Deblinger’s High School National Championship title adds another important layer to the weekend. The high school sailors did not compete in a watered-down version of the event. They sailed the same course, in the same fleet, and under the same demanding conditions. Deblinger’s victory shows exactly why the class believes high school sailors belong in this pathway and why school-based Dinghy Foiling has so much room to grow.
This championship was also the final step in a season-long qualifying structure that brought the WASZP to clubs and programs across the country. The class ran four regional qualifiers leading into Toms River, giving high school and college sailors a pathway into the national championships and giving host clubs the chance to see how accessible and exciting Dinghy Foiling can be when it is supported properly.
Those qualifiers were an important part of the story.
Each event helped build the fleet, introduce new sailors, and give schools a reason to organize around the WASZP. Some sailors arrived with significant foiling experience. Others were still developing the boat handling and race skills needed to compete. That mix is healthy. It shows the class is creating both a racing platform and a development pathway.
The class extends a sincere thank you to every club that hosted a qualifier, every race official who made those events possible, every parent and volunteer who helped move boats and sailors around the country, and every sailor who showed up to compete for their school. The 2026 championships were stronger because of the work done at each regional event.
The next step is to make 2027 even better.
The WASZP class is now recruiting coaches, sailors, parents, alumni, and college sailing supporters to help form a working board for the 2027 High School and College Championship season. The goal is to establish regions, dates, qualification rules, championship formats, and event standards early enough for schools and clubs to plan properly.
This is a chance to help build the structure of high school and college Dinghy Foiling in North America. The class is looking for people who want to solve practical problems, support host clubs, help new schools enter the pathway, and create a fair, exciting, and sustainable championship series. Coaches and sailors who want to help shape the 2027 season should contact the class and join the planning effort.
The opportunity is significant. The WASZP gives schools a modern, exciting, one-design foiling platform that can sit alongside traditional sailing while offering something completely different. It creates a place for high-performance sailors to stay connected to school-based racing. It gives clubs a new way to inspire teenagers and college sailors. It gives alumni and supporters a reason to help build something that can last.
Toms River Yacht Club gave the 2026 championships the stage they deserved. The class is grateful to the club leadership, race committee, volunteers, food and hospitality teams, support crews, and everyone who helped deliver the event. Championships only work when a host club commits fully, and Toms River did exactly that.
The 2026 High School and College Championship season now comes to a close, but the larger season is only gaining momentum.
For the best sailors in North America, the countdown has already begun toward Lake Garda in 2027 and the first World Sailing WASZP Games. That event will bring the top WASZP sailors from around the world together on one of sailing’s most iconic venues, and North America intends to be ready.
Training begins again this coming weekend at the Atlantic Coast Championships. From there, the pathway continues to the Canadians, the North Americans, and then the Americas Championship in early August in Kingston. Every event now matters. Every start, every tack, every speed build, and every lesson learned becomes part of the preparation.
The 2026 championships at Toms River were not just the end of a season. They were a marker.
Purdue and Michigan showed what college WASZP racing can become. Jack Deblinger showed what high school sailors can already do. Toms River Yacht Club showed what a championship venue can deliver. The regional qualifiers showed that a national pathway is possible. The sailors showed that the next generation is ready.
Now the work begins again.