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One of the most respected names in swimming throughout the world, six-time Olympic coach Richard Quick begins his 17th year at the helm of the Stanford women's swimming and diving program in 2004-05. Quick has won a total of 12 NCAA team titles during his 28-year collegiate coaching career, the most in the history of Division I coaching.
Quick has built his reputation as one of the top coaches not only in the nation but on the entire planet with three head coaching assignments at the Olympic Games (1988, '96, 2000), as well as three assistant coaching tours of duty (1984, '92, 2004) at the Olympics.
Quick assumed the head coaching reigns at Stanford from George Haines in August of 1988 and guided his first Cardinal team to a national championship the following March, marking only the second national swimming crown in school history at that point. Quick's Stanford teams have won seven NCAA championships, including six in the past 13 seasons, while finishing lower than fifth just once and never lower than sixth in his 16-year tenure. His other national titles at Stanford were captured with five in a row from 1992-96 and another in 1998. In the nine seasons under Quick in which Stanford has not claimed the national title, the Cardinal has placed either second (1990, '91, '97, '99, 2001) or third (2000, '02) at the NCAA Championships seven times. Stanford finished third or better for 22 consecutive years at the NCAA's andnationally for 27 straight seasons (previously AIWA) before placing sixth in 2003 and fifth in 2004.
Quick has led Stanford to 13 Pacific-10 Conference crowns, including two in the last three years and its most recent in 2004 when the Cardinal reached the top of the Pac-10 for only the second time since the start of the new century after having won the first 13 league meets from 1987-99.
He started his Stanford career by winning his first 57 dual meets and did not lose a dual meet until his ninth season when the Cardinal was defeated by USC on January 27, 1996. Quick's teams on The Farm have combined to sport an all-time dual meet record of 116-9 (.928).
While at Stanford, he has coached 92 All-Americans to 725 All-American honors and helped develop 40 NCAA champions who have captured a combined 61 NCAA individual and 29 NCAA relay titles. He has picked up five NCAA Coach of the Year honors and four Pacific-10 Coach of the Year awards, most recently being honored by the NCAA in 1991-92 and the Pac-10 in 2000-01.
Quick's latest NCAA championship came in 1998 when Stanford earned a place in collegiate history with its record eighth NCAA title. The Cardinal also went unbeaten in dual competition (7-0) for the ninth time in 10 years and won its 12th straight Pac-10 title.
Quick's success as a collegiate head coach is not limited to the Stanford campus. as he has compiled an overall dual meet record of 205-38 (.844) and a 173-29 (.856) mark as a women's head coach. Quick has led his teams to 19 conference crowns, all on the women's side. Before coming to The Farm, he led Texas to a then-unprecedented five straight NCAA titles (1984-88), a string he extended to six in a row in his first season with the Cardinal. He was inducted into the Texas Women's Athletics Hall of Fame in November of 2004 for his coaching accomplishments with the Longhorns.
To put things in perspective, of the past 21 NCAA titles awarded, squads coached by Richard Quick have captured 12 of them.
Prior to his stints with Stanford and Texas, Quick served as both the men's and women's head coach at Auburn for four seasons (1978-82). While there, he was the guiding force behind a successful men's program, as well as the building block for a women's program that has gone from an NCAA also-ran to win the last three NCAA titles (2002-04). Quick also served as the men's head coach at Iowa State during the 1977-78 season and the women's head coach at Southern Methodist in 1976-77.
The three U.S. Olympic women's teams that have had Quick at the helm have had great success as well. In his first Olympic head coaching assignment at the 1988 Games in Seoul, the American women brought home 17 medals. At the 1996 Games in Atlanta, the women garnered seven gold, five silver and two bronze medals, while the men's and women's swimming squads combined for a total of 26 medals, the most by any team at the 1996 Olympic Games. His 2000 club brought home 16 medals (seven gold, two silver, seven bronze).
The Americans have also done well when he has served as an assistant coach. At Athens in 2004, Team USA easily won the swimming medal count as the men's and women's team combined for 28 medals (18 men, 10 women) to easily outdistance second-place Australia (15 total). At the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, the United States (which featured five Stanford student-athletes) captured 27 medals, 17 of which hung from the necks of Cardinal swimmers. As an assistant men's coach at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, Quick helped one of his pupils, Rowdy Gaines, to three gold medals.
Quick also has other impressive accomplishments on his international resume. Since 1986, when he was first named the national coach for USA Swimming, he has been involved in nearly every international meet in which the United States has participated.
A list of other international coaching assignments includes four consecutive World Championships as the head coach in 1986, 1990 and 1994, and an assistant in 1982. He has also coached at the 1990 Goodwill Games, three Pan Pacific Games (1983, `85, `87), the 1985 World University Games and the 1979 Pan American Games.
Quick has also been the post-collegiate coach for some of the top women's swimmers in American history.
Jenny Thompson, Dara Torres and Misty Hyman all trained with Quick in preparation for the 2000 Olympics.
Thompson, a 1995 Stanford graduate, retired following the 2004 Olympics after becoming the most decorated American athlete in the history of the Games, bringing home eight gold medals and 12 overall as a member of a record-tying four Olympic teams (1992, '96, 2000, '04). She also broke several world and American records while swimming under Quick.
Torres launched her comeback for the 2000 Olympics under Quick's watch to become the first woman to ever swim in four Olympic Games. In Sydney, she was the top medal winner of any athlete with five medals (two gold, three bronze).
Hyman, who finished her collegiate career with 12 NCAA titles and the maximum 28 All-American honors, was a surprise gold medal winner in the 200 meter fly at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney while the 2001 Stanford graduate was still a student-athlete on The Farm.
He also continues to coach 2004 Olympian and 11-time NCAA champion Tara Kirk, who graduated from Stanford in 2004. Kirk became the first Stanford student-athlete to earn Collegiate Woman of the Year honors for her efforts as a senior in 2003-04, while also earning the NCAA and Pac-10 Swimmer of Year awards.
Three members of Stanford's current 2004-05 team - Caroline Bruce, Kristen Caverly and Dana Kirk - were also on the 2004 U.S. Olympic squad.
Quick recently became a Distinguished Alumnus at his alma mater Southern Methodist in 2002, where he earned a Bachelor's degree in Physical Education (1965) and a Master's degree in Physiology of Exercise (1977). He began his coaching career at Houston's Memorial High School (1965-71), guiding his team to six state championships before returning to SMU, where he served as an assistant coach on the men's side for four years (1971-75) before starting the SMU women's program in 1976.
Quick and his wife, June, reside in Menlo Park with June's children, Tiffany (23) and Benjamin (21). His daughter, Mrs. Kathy Brown (38), lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband, Tosh, and their two children, Blake (12) and Emily (10). Quick's son, Michael (34), is a 1994 graduate of Auburn and resides in Los Angeles.
QUICK FACTS
Stanford Dual Meet Record
116-9 (.928, 16 Years)
Overall Dual Meet Record
205-38 (.844, 28 Years)
Collegiate Coaching Career
Stanford Women's Head Coach (1988-Present)
Texas Women's Head Coach (1982-88)
Auburn Men's and Women's Head Coach (1978-82)
Iowa State Men's Head Coach (1977-78)
Southern Methodist Women's Head Coach (1976-77)
Southern Methodist Men's Assistant Coach (1971-75)
Collegiate Coaching Honors
Five-time NCAA Coach of the Year (1984, '85, '86, '89, '92)
Four-time Pac-10 Coach of the Year (1989, '92, '95, 2001)
Southwest Conference Coach of the Year (1985)
High School Coaching Career
Memorial High School (Houston, TX) Head Coach (1965-71)
International Coaching Career
U.S. Men's and Women's Head Coach (Olympics - 1988)
U.S. Women's Head Coach (Olympics - 1996, 2000)
U.S. Men's and Women's Assistant Coach (Olympics - 1984)
U.S. Women's Assistant Coach (Olympics - 1992, 2004)
U.S. Women's Head Coach (World Championships - 1986, '90, '94)
U.S. Women's Assistant Coach (World Championships - 1982)
U.S. Women's Head Coach (Goodwill Games - 1990)
U.S. Women's Head Coach (Pan Pacific Championships - 1983, '85, '87)
U.S. Women's Head Coach (World University Games - 1985)
U.S. Women's Assistant Coach (Pan American Games - 1979)
College Education
Bachelor's Degree, Physical Education, Southern Methodist, 1965
Master's Degree, Physiology of Exercise, Southern Methodist, 1977
Personal
Wife - June
Children - Kathy Brown (38), Michael (34), Tiffany (23), Benjamin (21)
QUICK QUOTES
What they're saying about Richard Quick
"Richard's biggest strength is his enthusiasm and his intensity. He is always "going for it" whether we are at the last day of the NCAA Championships or at a 6:00 am morning practice in the middle of the season. Richard's biggest strength is his enthusiasm and his intensity. The way that Richard inspires our team is that he believes that anything was possible if we work hard and believe in ourselves.
Misty Hyman
2000 Olympic gold medalist in the 200 meter butterfly and 28-time collegiate All-American
"In the past two years Richard has taught me more about the details of swimming than I had learned in the previous 12 years combined. The most important thing I learned from Richard was to believe in myself. Richard has always said "Believe in Belief" and in my case it was certainly true. I don't think I would have made the Olympica team if it had not been for Richard telling me, every day , to believe that I belonged on that team. Once he got that drilled into me, everything else fell into place."
Dana Kirk
2004 Olympian and nine-time All-American
"My decision to go to Stanford was probably the best decision of my life. My experience as a student-athlete was amazing. I owe much of my success at Stanford to Richard Quick, whose passion for swimming inspired me every day. Richard swims every race with each one of his swimmers and believes in all of this athletes. He pushed me to achieve at the highest levels and to believe that I had the ability to be the best. Richard has inspired me to become a better athlete as well as a better person."
Tara Kirk
2004 Olympian, 11-Time NCAA Champion and 2003-04 Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year
"My experience at Stanford was amazing and probably the most memorable experience of my life. Richard Quick was an invaluable part of that! He's the most passionate and determined coach I have ever worked with. He inspires me not only by his attitude and enthusiasm on a daily basis, but by the sincere belief he showed in every one of his swimmers. Richard inspired me to believe and dream at the highest level every day in practice. My life as an athlete, and better yet as a person, is better because of my Stanford swimming experience.
Shelly Ripple
23-time All-American and Stanford Record Holder in the 200 Yard Butterfly
"One of the reasons I picked Richard Quick to coach me for the 2000 Olympics after seven years off from the sport is because of his tremendous ability to coach swimmers as individuals. He's an awesome sprint coach, and he's very easy to communicate with, which I feel is extremely important for an athlete and coach. There was a point in time when I had to swim on my own with him, and I didn't know how I'd do it with no one next to me pushing me in the water. He's such a great motivator on the deck that I didn't need anyone next to me.
Dara Torres
Four-Time Olympian
Richard Quick Year-By-Year Collegiate Coaching
Year: School, Dual, Record, Conference Finish, NCAA Finish
2003-04: Stanford, 5-2, 1st Pac-10, 5th
2002-03: Stanford, 8-2, 2nd Pac-10, 6th
2001-02: Stanford, 8-0, 1st Pac-10, 3rd
2000-01: Stanford, 6-1, 4th Pac-10, 2nd
1999-00: Stanford, 6-1, 2nd Pac-10, 3rd
1998-99: Stanford, 9-2, 1st Pac-10, 2nd
1997-98: Stanford, 7-0, 1st Pac-10, 1st
1996-97: Stanford, 10-0, 1st Pac-10, 2nd
1995-96: Stanford, 6-1, 1st Pac-10, 1st
1994-95: Stanford, 8-0, 1st Pac-10, 1st
1993-94: Stanford, 6-0, 1st Pac-10, 1st
1992-93: Stanford, 8-0, 1st Pac-10, 1st
1991-92: Stanford, 5-0, 1st Pac-10, 1st
1990-91: Stanford, 10-0, 1st Pac-10, 2nd
1989-90: Stanford, 8-0, 1st Pac-10, 2nd
1988-89: Stanford, 6-0, 1st Pac-10, 1st
1987-88: Texas, 9-0, 1st SWC, 1st
1986-87: Texas, 9-0, 1st SWC, 1st
1985-86: Texas, 6-2, 1st SWC, 1st
1984-85: Texas, 4-1, 1st SWC, 1st
1983-84: Texas, 6-1, 1st SWC, 1st
1982-83: Texas, 8-1, 1st SWC, 3rd
1981-82: Auburn (m), 4-2, 3rd SEC, 11th; Auburn, 7-1, 3rd SEC, 4th
1980-81: Auburn (m), 6-2, 3rd SEC, 6th; Auburn, 3-2, 3rd SEC, 7th AIAW
1979-80: Auburn (m), 6-2, 3rd SEC 5th; Auburn, 3-4, N/A, 12th AIAW
1978-79: Auburn (m), 7-2, 3rd SEC 5th; Auburn, 0-6,N/A, 21st AIAW
1977-78: Iowa State (m), 9-1, 3rd Big 8, DNC
1976-77: SMU, 2-2, N/A, DNC
Totals: 205-38, 19 Conference Titles, 12 NCAA Titles
*All teams were women's teams unless noted with an (m) for men's teams.
Last Updated: 1/12/05