David Parrington

David Neale Parrington was born on July 28, 1955, in Wallasey, Merseyside, Great Britain. Like other athletes in this section, he had a successful career in South Africa, before emigrating to start a new successful career in another country. 

His father was appointed pool superintendent at the Mabelreign Municipal Pool in Salisbury, Rhodesia in February 1959, David where he attended Mount Pleasant High School. David participated in swimming, water polo, and diving, in which he excelled. He represented Rhodesia in diving competitions against South Africa. After independence was achieved in Zimbabwe, David also competed in the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow.

After finishing high school, he spent four years in the BSAP, before getting a scholarship to the University of Houston, in 1978. David became the diving coach at Houston, until 1990, when he moved to the University of Tennessee, where he is still the Head diving coach in 2024.

Tennessee divers during the Parrington era have competed at the Olympics, World Championships, World University Games, World Diving Cup, Pan American Games, the Commonwealth Games, and the African Games. During the 1999 and 2000 SEC championships meets, Parrington coached Gabi Chereches to an SEC Commissioners Trophy, awarded to the swimmer or diver with the highest point total at the meet.

David coached Zimbabwe's Olympic team in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics as well as the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Other Olympic service includes two stints (1998, 2008) as a judge at the U.S. Olympic diving trials and a selector for the USA Olympic team selection camp hosted at the Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center. He also served the United States diving team as a coach for the 1997 World Cup qualifying and championships rounds and was rewarded with the USA Diving Coaches Award of Excellence. Parrington was named the head coach of Team USA at the 2014 Fina World Series in London, England.

His mother was British Olympic swimmer Lillian Preece, and his grandfather was International Swimming Hall of Fame Honouree (ISHOF) Frank Parrington.

His father, also known as Frank Parrington, was a swimming coach, with Lillian, in Rhodesia and South Africa. His brother Martin Parrington won Springbok colours playing water polo for South Africa.

1974 Rhodesian and SA divers: Les Smith, Don Liebermann, Adrienne Wilson, Gina Lawrie (SA), Dave Parrington, Jennie Lundie (SA), Joe Thewlis (SA), Martin Lundie (SA).

UT diving coach’s grandfather holds record in former Olympic event

Aug 15, 2016

KNOXVILLE – Some Olympic events are more popular than others, while some are just odd. One of those is the plunge for distance. Athletes don’t complete in it at the games anymore, but UT’s head diving coach says his grandfather holds the world record.

Plunge for distance was an Olympic event in only one summer: 1904.

“The competitor simply dives in off the side of the pool, and then floats and glides in a streamline body position as far as they can in one minute,” said UT head diving coach David Parrington.

It’s all done while holding your breath. Parrington says his grandfather holds the world record. It was achieved in 1933 at 86 feet and eight inches, farther than the distance of UT’s pool. Some of UT’s swimmers decided to try it out, but only went about half the distance.

“He had great breath control, but also important to work on the angle of entry,” said Parrington.

His grandfather, Frank Parrington, could even go father if allowed to glide for more than a minute.

Frank Parrington was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1986 and won several championships in Britain.

“He has always had legendary status within our family. He was a World War I and World War II veteran, so he was always a hero in our minds,” said Coach Parrington.

Now his grandson is trying to carry on his tradition as a diving coach at UT. David Parrington says he has tried the plunge for distance several times. Just a few years ago, he was able to glide to 75 feet in one minute.

Frank Parrington (GBR)

Honor Pioneer Diver (1986)

FOR THE RECORD:  Frank Parrington, “Plunger” extraordinaire, was a Liverpool policeman, wounded and gassed in WWI and killed in WWII during the blitzkrieg.  Between wars he was the all-time greatest plunger, setting the World Record several times and winning 11 British National Championships between 1926 and 1939.

The Plunge for distance is how far a man can propel himself from a dive in 60 seconds.  Parrington’s greatest rivals were Teddy Abrams (USA) and Arther Beaumont (GBR) but neither approached Frank Parrington’s world Records.  The event was finally discontinued in 1947.  Parrington’s World Record of 86 ft. 8 inches set in 1933 has never been broken.  The second, third, and fourth best distances were also his, 85 ft. 10 inches in 1927, 85 ft. 4 inches in 1929, and 85 ft. 6 inches in his first championship plunge in 1926. 

He won British Championships in 1926, 1927, 1928, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1938 and 1939.  Beaumont beat him in 1929, 1930, 1931, and 1932 then Frank came back never to lose again.

Parrington died during the Liverpool Blitz on 8 May 1941, at age 42.

Lillian Preece (1 April 1928 – July 2004) was a British swimmer. She competed at the 1948 Summer Olympics and the 1952 Summer Olympics.

She also represented England and won a bronze medal in the 440 Yard Freestyle Relay at the 1950 British Empire Games in Auckland, New Zealand. She won the 1952 ASA National Championship 220-yard freestyle title.

Lillian was a swimming coach in Rhodesia and South Africa.