US Sailing Announces 2025 Kevin Burnham Memorial Grants Recipients
Bristol, RI – February 26, 2025 – US Sailing is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2025 Kevin Burnham Memorial Grants, made possible by the generous support of the sailing community in honor of Kevin Burnham’s remarkable legacy.
Three promising young sailors have been selected to receive the 2025 Kevin Burnham Memorial Grants: Grant Janov, Nico Martin, and Carolina Zager.
Grant Janov is a go-getter who has been sailing since the age of 7. Now a recent college grad, his drive to compete in the LA Olympics is so strong that he finished school in just three years so he could dedicate himself to training full-time during the entirety of the current quadrennium.
Grant will use his funding to purchase a new mainsail in preparation for training with his sailing partner and brother Jordan, who just finished high school, and US Sailing Team members Nevin Snow and Ian MacDiarmid.
“Having this funding will allow us the opportunity to train with a senior team and be both a more valuable asset to their campaign, while also accelerate our learning process, as it is more accurate to speed test and take sail scans of a new mainsail than the one which we have upwards of 50 days on, plus a repair to the window,” Grant wrote in his funding application.
Nico Martin and Carolina Zager are a fairly new racing team, but both already have impressive sailing resumes at ages 24 and 18 years old respectively. Starting as an Optimist sailor on Key Biscayne Bay at the age of 8, sailing quickly grew into a fiery passion for Carolina and at about 13 she switched into the 29er.
Alongside skipper Laura Hamilton, she scored 25th at her first World Championship in Spain, 4th for women. The pair won bronze at Nationals, gold in the women’s division at UK Nationals (pre-worlds), and then qualified for Youth Worlds in Brazil, where they finished 5th overall.
Transitioning out of the youth sailing space, Carolina discovered the 49erFX and Nacra 17. She was looking for a skipper to partner with for the next stage in her competitive career when Nicolas “Nico” Martin reached out.
Nico started sailing in Optimists at the age of six. By the time he turned nine, he was one of the best young competitors in the Pacific Northwest region. In his mid-teens he was invited by Ian MacDiarmid to sail the 29er with him at an Olympic Development Clinic and was immediately hooked on working with a teammate to push fast boats to their limits.
Nico is a two-time North American Champion and has competed in many national and international events, including the 2018 Youth Worlds, the 2018 Youth Olympic Games, 2020 Kiel Week, and the Youth Americas Cup (as part of the Spanish Team.) He is also the reigning World Champion in the Tornado Class (U26, July 2024).
Carolina and Nico are campaigning for the 2028 LA Olympics in the Nacra 17. They will use their grant to help pay for registration, housing, boat transport, and coaching for the 2025 Semaine Olympique Française (Hyères, France) from 19 – 26 April 2025.
ABOUT THE KEVIN BURNHAM AWARD & GRANTS
Both on and off the water, Kevin Burnham was known for his exuberance and kindness, which guided him as a sailor, a competitor, and as a coach. His remarkable legacy is carried on through an endowed Award, annual Grant, and a memorial Fund started by his wife, Elizabeth Kratzig, children Edward and Kyla Burnham, and lifelong friend Steve Benjamin.
Grants are given annually to sailors in Olympic classes and/or the Olympic Development Program who are eligible to represent the United States at a USOPC delegation event and are under the age of 32.
Grantees are chosen through a competitive process and must carry on Kevin’s legacy by demonstrating outstanding competitive sailing potential, displaying an infectious enthusiasm, and competing in two-person trapeze dinghies. The performance and results of sailors are also considered when choosing Grant recipients. To donate to the Fund and continue Kevin Burnham’s legacy, click here.