Rio 2016 - Son of Kiwi sailing icon crews for USA in Paralympics
by RG on 16 Sep 2016
The US team powers upwind - Sonar - 2016 Paralympics - Day 3, September 16, 2016 Richard Langdon / World Sailing
The son of one of New Zealand's first professional maxi yacht skippers, the late Bruce Kendell, is sailing in the USA's three man Sonar keelboat at the 2016 Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Brad Kendell was pulled badly burned from the flames of the light plane crash in 2003 which claimed the lives of his father Bruce, the skipper of the Jim Kilroy owned maxi Kialoa, and the pilot. Brad Kendell, then aged 22 was pulled from the wreckage. He later had both legs amputated.
Sailing with skipper Rick Doerr and Hugh Freund in the Sonar, they have been together as a crew for seven years and won the World Championship for the class at the 2016 Para World Sailing Championships in Medemblik, (NED) in late May 2016.
They narrowly missed selection for the 2012 Paralympics, but regrouped an won the US nomination for 2016 in Rio.
Currently they lie in second overall with two days and three races left to sail at the 2016 Paralympics, with a 9 pt margin ahead of the chasing pack in third to seventh places.
For the hour long streamed video of the US Olympic and Paralympic team click here
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