Durden Named Finalist For ASCA Coach Of The Year
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – California men's swimming & diving head coach David Durden has been named as one of six finalists for the 2022 American Swimming Coaches Association's George Haines Coach of the Year Award. Durden and five other finalists were announced by the ASCA on Tuesday.
Joining Durden as finalists are Todd DeSorbo (Virginia), Ray Looze (Indiana), Greg Meehan (Stanford), Anthony Nesty (Florida) and Michael Norment (Georgia Tech). All six finalists coached athletes who won gold medals at the recent FINA World Championships in Budapest, Hungary. The award is given annually to the individual whose coaching effectiveness contributed the most towards American swimming excellence on the world stage.
Durden – who was previously named the ASCA George Haines Coach of the Year in 2016 – coached Ryan Murphy to three medals, including a pair of golds at the 2022 FINA World Championships in June. Murphy, one of four team captains for the United States, won his first individual world title in the 200-meter backstroke (1:54.52), earned gold in the 4x100m mixed medley relay by swimming the leadoff leg in prelims, and captured silver in the 100m back (51.97).
It has been a decorated calendar year for Durden, who guided the Golden Bears to the 2022 NCAA team title in March. The title was Cal's fifth under Durden in his 15-year tenure and extended a streak of 12 consecutive NCAA Championship meets that the Bears have finished in the top two dating back to 2010. For his efforts in the collegiate campaign, Durden was named the NCAA Coach of the Year for the sixth time and the Pac-12 Coach of the Year for the 11th time overall and fifth consecutive season.
The 2022 ASCA George Haines Coach of the Year winner will be revealed on Sept. 8, 2022 at the awards banquet during the ASCA World Clinic at the Westgate Resort in Las Vegas. The ASCA Coach of the Year has been awarded since 1961. In addition to Durden's recognition as the ASCA Coach of the Year in 2016, past recipients include many greats in the profession, including George Haines, for the award is named, Doc Counsilman, Eddie Reese, Bob Bowman, Gregg Troy, Jon Urbanchek and many others.
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