RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL (WHDH) - Two men with ties to New England are representing Team USA in sailing and they are hoping to go for gold.
Both Stu McNay and Dave Hughes got their start in sailing in New England when they were young. McNay was born in Boston and his family has a house on the water in Wareham and Hughes grew up in Maine, where he learned how to sail. Both men have known each other for more than a decade but started competing together as a team after the 2012 Olympics in London.
The team’s coach was former Olympian Trevor Moore. The Quincy native disappeared in Biscayne Bay off the coast of Miami last year just before McNay and Hughes were going to compete in the European Championships regatta. They made the difficult decision to follow through with the regatta and ended up winning first place. Their win came two days after the search for Moore was called off.
“Trevor was always our biggest supporter,” said Hughes.
McNay and Hughes made the Olympic sailing team earlier this year and are competing in the Men’s 470 dinghy race in Rio. While Moore cannot be with them, the team said he is there in spirit.
“I know he knew all the time that we could create and make a successful Olympics for ourselves,” said Hughes. “I’m sure he’s excited.”
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