Gulari, Pettibone head into final Olympic tryouts this week

Pictured: Nacra 17 sailors Bora Gulari (Detroit, Mich.) and Louisa Chafee (Warwick, R.I.), US Sailing Team Sperry, during a training run.

Detroiter Bora Gulari and Port Huron’s Katie Pettibone have one more set of trials this week in Clearwater, Fla., as they vie for the one Olympic berth in the Nacra 17 class.

Gulari, with a new partner following the injury of his original partner, finished ahead of the other American teams, in 12th overall. Pettibone was the fourth American team, in 24th place.

Here’s what US Sailing said about the race:

World Cup Miami in the Nacra 17 class was the quick rise of Bora Gulari (Detroit, Mich.) and Louisa Chafee (Warwick, R.I.), who started sailing together just weeks before the first selection event, though both bring significant high-performance experience to the table. Heading into Clearwater, Gulari and Chafee enter as the team to beat, with an eight point lead over second place Mark Mendelblatt and Carolina Mendelblatt (Miami, Fla.).

The husband-and-wife Mendelblatt pair has vast experience in Olympic-class racing, with three Olympic games in three different classes between them, in addition to three years of competing in the Nacra 17.

Nevertheless, Gulari says that the only thing that matters heading it the Worlds is a clear focus on the task at hand. “We are confident in all conditions,” said the two-time Moth World Champion and US Sailing Rolex Yachtsman of the Year. Gulari previously campaigned for the Games in the 49er, but said this is a totally new, and more competitive, experience. “This time around, it’s totally different,” said Gulari. “It’s good to be a real player [in terms of earning Olympic selection], and not living in my van.”