The Coaches

Swimming Coaches

South African swimming coaches are usually independent entrepreneurs. They often build their own pools and generate additional income by managing a Learn to Swim program in addition to elite level coaching. Swimmers are usually free to join whichever club they wish. There is also a growing number of lager set-ups, like the TUKS Aquatic club, which associated with the University of Pretoria. Schools like Westville High near Durban have developed entire aquatic centres, where coach Graham Hill develops Olympic champions like Chad le Clos. Swimming has become big business in South Africa.

While most coaches remain largely anonymous, and the performing athletes become famous, some South African swimming coaches have become well known on a national level. In the 1920's Jimmy Green of Pretoria (seen below with Olympic medallist Jennie Maakal) who was often mentioned in the press and Rachael Finlayson of Durban coached the 1928 Olympic team to a bronze medal, and the Durban Beach baths were eventually named after her. In the 1950's and 60's Peter Elliot was well known locally  in Port Elizabeth for producing national champions like Geoff Grylls and Brian Elliot.

There have many foreign coaches in southern Africa. Larry Laursen came from the USA to coach in South West Africa (now Namibia) in 1966, while Frank Gray was recruited from England by the South African government to coach in Kimberley, where he became famous as the coach of Karen Muir. Cecil Colwin is described as the 'first professional coach in South Africa', while Jonty Skinner has become a USA Olympic coach.

In Rhodesia coaches like Sid Gibbons, Frank Parrington and his wife Lillian, who was a British Olympic swimmer, produced many South African champion swimmers. Their son David Parrington is a US Olympic diving coach. Other foreign coaches operating in South Africa included Dutch coach Clara Aurik in Cape Town, Australians Bob Campbell in Pretoria, Terry Gulliver and Jim Spring, and Karoly von Törrös of Hungary who coached Sarah Poewe in Cape Town during the 1980's.

Diving Coaches

Diving was usually part of the 'aquatic carnivals' and has traditionally been a part of the national aquatic championships. For many years Rhodesia fielded unbeatable divers in the South African championships due to superior coaches like Sandy Morganrood. Below is Ernst de Jong with American Olimpic diver Keith Russel. de Jong was a member of the South African contingent that went to Oklahoma University in 1953, and the man behind the de Jong diving school in Pretoria.