The US Sailing programme announced its Sportsman, Sportswoman and teams of the year and Maureen McKinnon-Tucker of Marblehead was their choice for 2009 Paralympic Sportswoman of the Year.

US Sailing made selections in six different Olympic and Paralympic categories, and those selections automatically served as nominations for consideration in the US Olympic Committee's (USOC) search for their Sportsman, Sportswoman and Team of the Year Awards. The USOC expanded its Paralympic category to include three awards this season instead of the usual one. Winners will be announced in January.

"I was quite surprised to get the call from our Olympic chairman," said McKinnon-Tucker, who won gold at the Paralympic Games in Beijing, China along with skipper Nick Scandone. "He noted the award this year was given because the Olympic Committee had been impressed that I had sailed on many different boats with some great sailors."

US Sailing bases its choices on performance on the water, achievement, and sportsmanship.

McKinnon-Tucker won the gold medal in the SKUD-18 class, but following Scandone's death due to ALS, she had to find a new partner or switch to a different class to continue to pursue her dream.

The mother of two young children made a smooth transition from a double-handed keelboat to a triple-handed boat and teamed up with her old skipper, Rick Doerr. Before switching to the SKUD class (where one partner has to be a woman), McKinnon-Tucker, Doerr and fellow Marblehead resident Tim Angle had been a very successful team that narrowly missed qualifying for the 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens.

Angle's schedule no longer permits him to train and compete at this level, so Hugh Freund of Maine has taken his place in the Sonar boat.

McKinnon-Tucker and her teammates captured first place at Sail For Gold in Weymouth, England: site of the 2012 Paralympic Games. They took bronze at the US Sailing 2009 Rolex in Miami, the first event the three sailed together.

In the 2009 Sailing World Cup standings, the team placed second in the Sonar class.

"I am proud of the 2009 regatta results, and I'm proud to have been part of the Silver Gold Cup World rankings our team achieved in 2009. For me this has been a year of good training, sailing on many types of boats with different sailors," said McKinnon-Tucker, who along with Scandone was named US Sailing's 2008 Team of the Year.

McKinnon-Tucker, who works with other disabled people teaching them to sail at Piers Park in Boston, learned a lot from Scandone. She was delighted that Sports Illustrated did a nice story about him last week.

While this latest honour is very nice, McKinnon-Tucker is more concerned about funds for the coming year; a crucial one in preparing for the 2012 Games. She is in need of financial support for training and competing costs which are very expensive and the coffers are low.

"A new boat is needed to remain competitive," McKinnon-Tucker said. "That's $40,000 (for a boat) and another $40,000 in expenses. Unlike previous years, US teams will need to compete overseas five times in the coming year, and the Euro is so unfavorable to the dollar right now."(The End)