A Jensen Beach teenager will represent Team USA at the Sailing World Championship in France this weekend, following years of competitive sailing that started when she was four years old. Harper Aberman first discovered the sport at a summer camp in Pennsylvania that her grandparents enrolled her in. "They then decided to throw my cousin and me into summer camp, where they then did a four-week course, and my cousin hated it, and I fell in love with it, and I ended up going for eight weeks," Aberman said.
When her family relocated to Jensen Beach, Aberman joined the green fleet program at the US Sailing Center of Martin County, where her competitive sailing career truly began to flourish. "That is where the sailing adventure took off for me," Aberman said. Aberman describes herself as an adrenaline junkie and says she is drawn to the sport's most challenging conditions. "When it's windy, I've always struggled to stay upright and stay out of the water," she said. Despite her modest self-assessment, Aberman has won countless tournaments, placed in several national competitions, and established herself as one of the biggest names in the youth sailing circuit.
Aberman learned she would represent Team USA during Spring Break when she received the life-changing email. "It was during Spring Break, I got the email. I started screaming, my parents started screaming, and we were like, 'This is not real. We're going to Europe this summer," Aberman said. To prepare for the championship, she has spent recent weeks training in Spain ahead of the competition.
Racing begins Monday at the venue in France. Aberman explained the training demands the location has required. "We plan on taking the waters Monday for racing, and it's just been a lot of recovery and a lot of time and effort out on the water, but it's definitely going to be worth it. Especially in the venue we're in," she said. The championship represents a significant milestone for the competitive sailor who developed her passion for the sport at the US Sailing Center of Martin County.