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Keith Burhans Receives National Award for Contribution to Disabled Sailing
By Marlieke Eaton
// US SAILING
// October 26, 2007
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| Photo by US SAILING |
(l-r) Past award recipient Peter Goldman, US SAILING President Jim Capron, Lynn Trophy recipient Keith Burhans, and Secretary of Council for Sailors with Disabilities Hugh Elliot pose at the US SAILING Annual Meeting and Awards Banquet.
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PHOENIX - US SAILING, national governing body for the sport of sailing, has presented Keith Burhans (Rochester, N.Y.) with the Gay S. Lynn Memorial Trophy for his outstanding contribution to disabled sailors and the sport of disabled sailing. Burhans is not only an accomplished disabled sailor himself, he is a leader and an innovator with a unique ability to foster connections among groups and to help individuals to reach their potential as sailors. Burhans was presented with the award at US SAILING's Annual Meeting in Phoenix, Ariz., during an awards banquet earlier this evening.
Burhans first became involved in disabled sailing when he competed in his first disabled regatta in 1997, the U.S. Independence Cup. He soon climbed the ranks and qualified to compete in the 2000 Paralympic Games in Sydney, Australia, where his Sonar team finished seventh. Over the years, he has been a regular at regattas, not only as a competitor, but also as a dedicated volunteer. He has used his considerable knowledge of the sport of sailing as well as of disabled sailing to develop a breakthrough adaptive seating, transfer and steering system. His innovation has since empowered numerous quadriplegics and other severely disabled sailors to compete effectively in the Sonar class.
The countless events Burhans has been involved in over the years are too many to list here, but most recently, he co-chaired the 2007 International Federation for Disabled Sailing's World Disabled Sailing Championship in Rochester, hosting a record 162 disabled competitors from 27 countries. Burhans has inspired many by being active in many leadership roles. For example, he serves on the Community Board of SportsNet for Disabled Athletes, the Board of the Rochester Rehabilitation Center and the Board of the Rochester, New York Yacht Club. He also serves as a Class Representative to US SAILING's Olympic Sailing Committee.
About the Gay S. Lynn Memorial Trophy
First presented in 2003, the Gay S. Lynn Trophy annually recognizes outstanding service, over a significant period of time, to disabled sailing and disabled sailors in the United States. The trophy may be awarded to a volunteer, a professional, or an organization. Past recipients of the award include Peter Goldman and the Judd Goldman Adaptive Sailing Foundation, Robie Pierce, Gene Hinkel and Urban Miyares.
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