College of Charleston Sailors Shine at 2024 Olympics

^{Above (l–r): Quique Arathoon ’17, Stefano Peschiera ’18 and Juan Maegli ’13}

College of Charleston sailoralumni Juan I. Maegli ’13 (Guatemala), Enrique (Quique) Arathoon ’17 (El Salvador) and Stefano Peschiera ’18 (Peru) and assistant coach Ian Barrows (United States) concluded the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics in strong fashion. Peschiera and Barrows both took home bronze in the men’s dinghy and men’s skiff events, respectively. All three alumni finished top 20 in the ILCA 7 event.

Barrows, who competed in his first Olympic games, was the first to medal in the group. Barrows, alongside partner Hans Henken – whose sister Paris Henken ’22 sailed at the College of Charleston and became the first female Olympian in the school’s history during the 2016 Summer Olympics – used an eighth-place finish in the medal race, which bested Team Ireland’s 18th place regatta, to jump into third place overall and secure bronze.

Peschiera took home bronze in the men’s dinghy event, capturing his first Olympic medal with a ninth-place finish in the medal race, narrowly securing third from Hungary and Norway. He earned Peru’s first medal since Barcelona 1992 and the country’s first in a sailing event. Peschiera also became the first CofC sailor to medal in the Olympics since Johnny Lovell took silver in the Greece 2004 with Team USA.

Maegli concluded his fifth and final Olympics in 16th, highlighted by a regatta-best third overall finish in the fourth race. Arathoon rounded out the trio in 20th place, posting fourth overall in the opening race of the 2024 Olympics in the men’s dinghy event. 

Find out more on cofcsports.com.