Ted Knapp has stepped down as the Goldman Family Director of Men’s Swimming, as announced by Jaquish and Kenninger Director of Athletics Bernard Muir.
“I would like to thank Ted for his 39 years of service to our men’s swimming and diving program as a student-athlete, assistant coach, associate head coach and most recently as our Goldman Family Director of Men’s Swimming for the past seven seasons,” said Muir. “Since his first season as a member of the coaching staff in 1984, Ted has earned a reputation for developing champions not just in the pool, but in life, and has overseen Stanford’s status as one of the highest-performing programs in the nation academically.”
Knapp, a former All-American and 1981 graduate of Stanford with a degree in civil engineering, has spent the past 35 years on the Cardinal coaching staff, beginning in 1984 when he was appointed volunteer assistant coach. During his tenure as a coach, 28 Stanford swimmers combined for 70 individual national championships, and the program won seven team championships (1985, 1986, 1987, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1998) and 33 conference championships, most recently back-to-back titles in 2016 and 2017.
“I’ve had the extreme pleasure of coaching at Stanford for 35 years,” said Knapp. “During that time, I’ve been surrounded by so much great support within the department and the university. That support, combined with the amazing quality of student-athletes I’ve had the pleasure of coaching, has made this experience a true honor. I especially want to thank my wife, Laurie, who has been through every moment of this journey with me. I couldn’t have had a better partner.
“I also want to thank Skip Kenney for the incredible opportunities and successes he allowed me to share with him over the many years we spent together on the pool deck. I am confident that my replacement will possess the experience, passion and focus to successfully lead this program and plan to assist with the transition however I can.”
As Goldman Family Director of Men’s Swimming, Knapp oversaw ten school records, most recently Jack Levant’s 200-yard freestyle (1:32.61) at the 2018 Texas Hall of Fame Swimming Invitational. This past season, Abrahm DeVine became the first Stanford swimmer since Tom Wilkens (1997-98) to capture consecutive 400-yard individual medley titles. Five members of this year’s squad (DeVine, Grant Shoults, True Sweetser, LeVant and Daniel Roy) were named to Team USA for the 2018-19 season, while all 20 student-athletes who were eligible for Pac-12 All-Academic honors earned the recognition.
Stanford will immediately begin the process of identifying Knapp’s replacement.
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