Chemical engineering undergraduate Tim Pitts has more on his mind than just his studies. Twenty-two-year-old Tim will be representing the Virgin Islands at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens in the Laser sailing event. Tim is the first Virgin Islander to earn a spot in this event and will be the only sailor from the Caribbean in the laser event at the Athens games. Lasers are single-handed boats that are four meters long with one sail. Laser sailing requires strength, as well as tactical proficiency.

Tim was born and raised on St. Croix and is currently a junior at URI. During the past year, he took a leave from the school to pursue his dream of going to the Olympics. To qualify for the challenge, he competed in international events in Australia, Spain, France, Turkey, California, Florida and New England. His training and devotion to his goal helped him move from a rank of 600+ in the world to 197 in less than a year.