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by Kymberly Taylor
Leo Boucher is sailing an ILCA 7 during the Lauderdale Olympic Classes Regatta. Photo by Allison Chenard.
Leo Boucher after the 2026 Croatian Nationals. Photo by Luke Elliott.
Leo Boucher, a rising star in the luminous constellation of professional sailing, has set his sights on racing the ILCA 7 during the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Boucher, who grew up sailing in Annapolis, narrowly missed a coveted slot on the 2024 Olympic Team, finishing just six points behind the leader during the Olympic Trials. He currently sails on the ILCA 7 Squad for the U.S. Olympic Athlete Development Team.
The ILCA, formerly called a Laser, is a 14-foot single-handed dinghy. At the highest level, racing the ILCA is exceptionally athletic, often requiring sailors to leap from side to side during tacks and to hike rigorously to keep the boat flat. “In a lot of sailors’ opinions, it is the most competitive class in the world… so racing in that class is pretty special, and I am very excited about it,” reflects Boucher.
Many professional sailors grew up with a mainsheet in one hand and a tiller in the other. Not Boucher. He was raised in West River in a mixed-race family. Though they enjoyed powerboating, neither of his parents sailed, and his family did not belong to a yacht club. Around the age of ten, his parents dropped him and his sister off at the junior sailing program at the Severn Sailing Association, one of Annapolis’ vibrant sailing hubs and home to the largest Laser fleet in North America. Boucher began in the sturdy Opti and, around age 13, transitioned into the ILCA 6 Radial, which is ideal for light-weight adults. When he was 18, he graduated to sailing the ILCA 7, which has a powerful seven-meter sail.
The magic began to flow when he went to St. Mary’s College, where he captained the varsity sailing team. Many talented sailors compete in college, but Boucher soared to the top. He was a two-time Intercollegiate Single-handed National Champion and two-time Collegiate Sailing All-American Honorable Mention, among other things. He graduated in spring 2023 and, in the fall, began coaching at Yale. His vision was to sail competitively at the highest possible level. “They found me,” he says. “I told them my priorities and that I wanted to sail, and they were very flexible with that. I was able to coach, sail, and had summers off to train as well as in the winters.”
Boucher, who is 26, has stepped away from coaching at Yale to focus full-time on his Olympic campaign. We spoke to him during one of his cross-country drives to California, where he coaches an ILCA team at Alamitos Bay Yacht Club and often trains with ILCA 7 championship sailor Luke Elliott. On this trip, Boucher planned to sail in Olympic waters in San Pedro, where the Olympic dinghy sailing events will take place. At the time of our call, he was trailering three Lasers and two coach boats. To earn money to
support himself while training and traveling, he and his father started a small business chartering coach boats and Lasers out to sailors, often from Europe, who arrive in need of equipment.
“This fall will be the first fall just focusing on sailing, which is cool. I may do some coaching here and there if I have downtime because there will be time off in between big training blocks or bay regattas as a reset period,” he explains.
The Olympic clock is ticking: trials for the 2028 Olympics take place in early and mid-2028, ahead of the Games, which are scheduled for July 14–30. He plans to continue to commute to California to train and attend national regattas from his home base in West River to save on costs. “I enjoy being able to go home and reset… and it’s way less money than living in LA when you are not coaching or sailing,” he says.
The Annapolis community is rallying to support Boucher in his Olympic campaign, which costs approximately $150,000 a year. To maintain a competitive edge, sailing high-level regattas is essential, but expensive. For example, it costs about $10,000 to attend a regatta in Europe. One must book a flight, show up at least four days early, and secure housing, a boat, a coach, and a coach boat. At the time of this writing, Boucher plans to attend Worlds in Ireland in August and, in 2027, sail regattas in countries including Brazil, Spain, and France.
Boucher has support from local individuals and from the Annapolis Yacht Club Foundation (AYCF), a nonprofit organization devoted to making sailing more accessible. Grants and scholarships are available regardless of membership in the Annapolis Yacht Club. Last February, AYCF launched its first “High Performance Fund,” which specifically supports local sailors pursuing the Olympics. AYCF President Kathy Parks explains, “Boucher’s campaign for LA28 is the fund’s first test of that mission in action. We believe Leo will inspire young sailors from Annapolis to dream big and create the next generation of Olympians.”
AYCF has made a significant commitment to Boucher for 2026. However, more funds are needed to ensure this gifted athlete becomes the best he can be. “He’s halfway there in terms of the cost… this is a critical year,” says Parks. “Funding him now is important.” The Annapolis community is rallying to support Boucher as he literally “goes for the gold.”
“We believe Leo will inspire young sailors from Annapolis to dream big and create the next generation of Olympians.”
– Kathy Parks, President, Annapolis Yacht Club Foundation
https://www.gofundme.com/f/2028-olympic-campaign-fund • www.aycfoundation.org/donate • lwbsailing.com
© Annapolis Home Magazine
Vol. 17, No. 4 2026