High Performance Coach and CEO Matt Bell is pleased to announce the hiring of two-time Olympian and Olympic finalist Julia Wilkinson, who will join the staff in August 2015 as Head Coach of Ajax Swimming.
Wilkinson has seventeen years of competitive swimming experience, including a six-year career on the Canadian National Team. During her tenure with Team Canada, Wilkinson swam at two Olympic Games (2008, 2012), reaching the final of the 200-meter Individual Medley in Beijing. She won 21 Canadian National Titles, held Canadian records in 6 individual and 4 relay events, and was also the first NCAA Champion in program history at Texas A&M University.
Since retiring from competitive swimming in 2012, Wilkinson has gained valuable experience working as a Sports Marketing Representative for Nike Swim and, most recently, as the Coordinator of Athlete Engagement at TORONTO2015. But she was not able to stay off the pool deck, and is ready to return to the sport full-time: “There is nothing I love more than this sport, and I always knew I would come back in some capacity; I wanted to take some time away to make sure I was ready to put my own swimming career behind me, and focus on the next generation,” said Wilkinson about the decision to start coaching full time. “I am excited to apply the same passion and attitude I had for my own swimming into coaching.”
Wilkinson credits Texas A&M Head Coach Steve Bultman, who will be inducted into the ASCAA Hall of Fame this year, as well as the late Randy Bennett as her inspirations to pursue a career in coaching. Wilkinson brings a wealth of experience around what it takes to swim against the best in the world, and is looking forward to coaching in a program that is high-performance oriented. “Julia belongs on deck and she is the only person I have ever met that is as competitive as I am. Her addition to the Staff will help to move our program further along the High Performance spectrum.” said Bell today.
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