USA Artistic Swimming Promotes Lara Teixeira to Chief of Sport
USA Artistic Swimming on Monday promoted Lara Teixeira to its Chief of Sport position. Teixeira had been the program’s high performance director. She will occupy an expanded role in that position to help replace Shari Darst, who announced her retirement last week.
Teixeira has been with the organization since 2019. A three-time Olympian in the pool, she won an Olympic silver medal as a coach. She wore many hats in her previous role, as a full-time assistant and national team manager.
Those roles will expand in her current position, with the ability to develop educational programs for the organization and extend her impact to other age-group levels and on short- and long-term horizons.
“I am thrilled to embark on this new chapter in my career at USAAS,” Teixeira said in a press release. “Throughout my journey within the organization, I have gained valuable insights into our strengths and opportunities for improvement. I embrace this role as an exciting challenge that will drive our progress forward. My focus will be on fostering growth not only at the highest competitive levels but also among our coaches, athletes, and officials within the membership. Together, we will learn, evolve, and achieve great things. I look forward to what the future holds for our organization.”
“Lara is the highest professional I have ever seen in this sport,” USAAS senior national team head coach Andrea Fuentes said. “Her optimism, radiant energy, and relentless work ethic are matched only by her ability to set firm but caring boundaries—something essential in this demanding role. Without a doubt, Lara is the ideal person to take on the role of Chief of Sport. I’m not only thrilled for her, but also for the entire organization!”
The U.S. is coming off a successful Paris Olympics, which included a silver medal in the team event.
Darst announced last weekend her retirement as USAAS’s education director. She will continue with the organization through the end of 2024 to help ease the transition to Teixeira.
“I want to thank everyone in the synchro community for your support over the years,” Darst said. “It has been my honor and privilege to serve as the Education Director for this organization. The opportunity I was given over 9 years ago to take on this position is one that I will never take for granted. I have seen first time coaches grow to become coaches for elite level camps and national teams. I have seen brand new judges become national and international judges. And finally, and most importantly, I have seen young athletes develop into Junior World Champions and Olympic Silver Medalists!
“I also want to take this opportunity to thank my family and close friends who have been by my side and believed in me from the beginning, I appreciate you all more than I could ever express. A heartfelt thank you to Adam for his support and guidance, and to all my coworkers for making my job easier. This chapter may be closing, but the connections will remain forever. Thank you for believing in me and helping me succeed in my role as the USAAS Education Director, I will forever cherish the memories and friendships made.”