Our interview with the Commander was informative and inspiring. A bay area native, an Olympian competitor and an all around athlete – Krysia has taken on challenges all her life. The next challenge is racing to Hawaii in the Pac Cup 2024 with her father Tony Pohl on an Express 27.
Commander Krysia Pohl was born and raised in Alameda, CA. he is a 1997 graduate of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. Her initial assignments included serving as a Deck Watch Officer aboard USCGC MORGENTHAU and as a staff officer at Integrated Support Command Alameda.
In 2002, she made the difficult decision to resign her commission to pursue her dream of competing in the Olympics. She was a member of the U.S. Sailing Team for six years, and was ultimately selected as the alternate to the 2004 Olympic Sailing Team.
Commander Pohl returned to the Coast Guard in 2006 and has served in dynamic assignments across the country including Sectors Delaware Bay (Philadelphia), Puget Sound (Seattle), and San Francisco as an Apprentice Marine Inspector, Marine Investigator, and Chief of the Inspection Division. She also served as the first Coast Guard Fellow in the Office of Senator Maria Cantwell (WA).
Additionally, she has supported a number of national contingencies including, Deepwater Horizon, Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, Wilma, and Harvey, the national COVID-19 response, and Operation Allies Welcome. She served at Coast Guard Headquarters as the Senior Strategic Advisor in the Commandant’s Advisory Group and had the pleasure of directly supporting both the 26th and 27th Commandants of the Coast Guard.
She is currently assigned to Sector San Francisco as the Chief of Prevention, where she oversees waterways management, and enforces vessel and facility regulatory compliance throughout the San Francisco Bay Area to ensure the safe movement of millions of dollars in cargo and millions of passengers annually.
Krysia and her husband have two lively young children who aspire to one day sail around the world with their parents.