Daniela Moroz, 23, American kite sailor has dominated her sport from a remarkably young age. She rapidly rise to become the undefeated Female World Champion by 15. Now she is qualified for the Paris Olympics 2024. Moroz also find a love with a professional sailor Carlos Robles.
Daniela Moroz’s Early Years in the San Francisco Bay Area
Daniela Moroz was born in 2000 and grew up as a child of the San Francisco Bay Area. Now she is a sailing phenomenon boasting four world titles and two prestigious roles Yachtswoman honors before age 25. She was born to her parents Linda Moser (Mother) and Czech Vlad Moroz (Father).
Daniela Moroz Parents are Immigrants from Czechoslovakia
Daniela’s parents, Linda Moser and Vlad Moroz, made daring escapes from communist Czechoslovakia in 1983 seeking freedom in the West.
At just 19 years old, Linda and some friends from outside Prague aimed to defect during a trip to Yugoslavia. After reaching a refugee camp in Belgrade, they hitchhiked to Austria. Linda was briefly detained by border soldiers before arriving at a refugee camp.
Also 19 years old, Vlad similarly used a tourist ski trip to slip away into Italy during lunch. He reflected that despite communist propaganda about the evils of the West, the truth was uncertain. Like Linda, Vlad stayed at a refugee camp before moving on.
Linda’s group had contacts in San Francisco who provided a path to entry into the U.S. Though she hoped to stay in Europe, the process would have taken longer. Sponsors helped Vlad initially reach Texas before he too settled in the Bay Area.
Linda worked odd jobs while studying English. She earned a sociology degree at the University of San Francisco. Vlad worked in a machine shop and later had a 35-year career at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
Windsurfing brought Linda and Vlad together within a year of immigrating. They discovered a local Czech community of windsurfers, including one another. Soon recognizing their similar refugee stories, the couple fell in love leading to their 1993 marriage.
They continued to compete locally in windsurfing, an Olympic sailing event, for years. In 2000, when Linda was several months pregnant with Daniela, she raced the grueling 20-mile San Francisco Classic, zig-zagging across the unpredictable winds and waves of the bay. The event is known for requiring Coast Guard assistance for stranded kiteboarders.
Meet Daniela Moroz Boyfriend Carlos Robles
Kiteboarding superstar Daniela Moroz is in a relationship with professional sailor Carlos Robles.
As Moroz first revealed in social media posts this February, she and Robles have been happily dating. Frequently spotted traveling to competitions and training sites across the Americas and Europe.
As Moroz noted, she’s spent increasing time following regattas in sailing hotspots like Miami and Newport where Robles stays active on the professional circuit. Away from her intense Olympic campaign, Daniela has used these trips in part as opportunities for revelation and growth both personally and as an athlete.
“Honestly, I’ve had some of my biggest epiphanies about kiting when I’ve had time off, and when I’ve been exposed to different surroundings. Recently I’ve been spending a lot of time in Miami and in Newport, Rhode Island, mostly because my boyfriend is in the pro sailing scene.
She said
Daniela Moroz Career
Early Career
Having two windsurfing parents, Daniela was engaged in watersports from a young age. She shared:
“Both of my parents were windsurfers, so they introduced me at an early age. “I chose kiting because this sport had really taken off. Soon after I began racing, the progression from raceboards to hydrofoil had started and I followed that progression.”
She said
At age 11, Moroz began learning to kiteboard during lessons at Sherman Island. Just a year later, she started competing locally in races hosted by the St Francis Yacht Club.
Moroz gained her first racing experience in the popular Thursday Night Kite Races out of Crissy Field when she was 12 years old. Picking up the new hydrofoiling skill shortly thereafter, she quickly took to its speed and complexity.
Remarkably, Moroz entered her first international kiteboarding competition at only 14 years old. She claimed her first World Championship title the very next year – at just 15 years old.
Over the next decade, Moroz went on to win an incredible five World Championships and four European Championship titles.
Professional Career
In 2016, the teen Daniela Moroz secured her first World Championship title at just 15 years old. On the strength of this incredible performance, Moroz was named US Sailing’s Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year – the youngest person, first female kiteboarder, and second kiteboarder ever to earn the distinguished award.
The next year, while balancing high school studies, 16-year-old Moroz ascended to the pinnacle of kiteboarding greatness by capturing the Formula Kite World Championship crown.
Related: Paris Olympics 2024 (Team USA Sailing): Meet Dominique Stater
Over the next three years from 2017-2019, Moroz remarkably managed to simultaneously dominate competition while keeping up with high school as a student-athlete. She went undefeated in every kiteboarding event entered across those years – tallying an unthinkable 4 more World Championships and 3 consecutive European Championships.
For this unrivaled three-year reign, Moroz was fittingly honored again as the US Sailing Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year in 2019.
As she began college studies at the University of Hawaii in 2019, Moroz continued showcasing excellence. She won the 2021 Women’s Formula Kite Worlds and European Championships, also placing first female in the US Open Sailing Series.
Qualify for Paris 2024 and Beyond
In 2022, Moroz decided to take leave from university to focus fully on Olympic dreams. She gained elite experience foiling for the US SailGP Team and qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics in kiteboarding’s debut event. Seen now as a gold medal favorite, she will look to add Olympic glory to her incredible career resume.
Daniela recently became first the American sailor to qualify in the new kiteboard events debuting at the next Summer Games. By qualifying over 2 years ahead of Paris 2024, Moroz stamped her ticket to compete on kiteboarding’s long-awaited Olympic introduction.
Her early qualification is a promising marker of Daniela’s gold medal ambitions and preparation. As her coach Charlie McKee effused:
“This is a fantastic opportunity for Daniela! She is an elite athlete who performs at the very top of her sport. Her relentless quest for improvement makes her a great fit for SailGP. Her already impressive campaigning skills will be enhanced even further, and the rigorous performance quest and off the water analysis will raise the bar even further. She is already a proven winner on the international stage of high-performance sailing, and both SailGP and Daniela will benefit from her becoming part of this team.”
said Charlie McKee who coached Moroz past winter in Florida, noted
To further hone her skills, Moroz gained the elite experience of foiling for the competitive US SailGP Team in their global circuit starting in 2022. Already a proven winner internationally, the demanding training and competition are ideal preparation as Daniela plots her Olympic medal path over the next two years.
Career Highlights
- 6-time Formula Kite World Champion from 2016-2022
- 4-time Open European Champion between 2017-2021
- Unmatched gold medal wins on the global and continental stage for 6 consecutive years
- 4 career accolades as US Sailing Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year (2016, 2019, 2021, 2022 )
- Double finalist for Rolex World Sailor of the Year honors (2018, 2021)
