Richard Zhu

Richard Zhu enters his third year as the Assistant Athletics Director for Sport Administration since his arrival on The Farm in December 2024. 

Zhu serves as sport administrator and supported the 2025-26 national champions in artistic swimming and sailing, along with oversight of men’s basketball, men's cross country, women's cross country, fencing, field hockey, men’s golf, women’s golf, lacrosse, women’s soccer, softball, squash, men's swimming and diving, women's swimming and diving, men's track and field, women's track and field, men’s volleyball, men's water polo and women’s water polo.

Zhu also led the successful hires of Chris Lindauer as the Paul A. Violich Director of Women’s Swimming and Elvira Khasyanova as the head artistic swimming coach.

The Stanford Athletics Gold Games, in which select sport contests are highlighted to increase student-athlete and general student attendance, was developed by Zhu in partnership with marketing and student-athlete leadership. The Coaching Cohort program, which identifies associate head and assistant coaches in the 36 sports who aspire to lead, was established under his leadership. Zhu also oversees the game contracts process for Stanford Olympic sports.

At the national level, Zhu represents the Atlantic Coast Conference on the NCAA Division I Field Hockey Oversight Committee.

Zhu served seven years at the Patriot League office (2017-24), culminating as the Associate Commissioner for Sport Operations. Prior to his time at the conference level, Zhu spent four years at the NCAA National Office (2013-17) and led as the Coordinator of Inclusion.

As a national speaker, Zhu has spoken at the NCAA Inclusion Forum, the NCAA Social Series: Asian American/Pacific Islander Heritage Month, and the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee Finding Leaders Among Minorities Everywhere (FLAME) program. Zhu was also honored as a Spring 2024 Champion of Diversity and Inclusion by the NCAA Minority Opportunities and Interests Committee.

A Medford, Ore. native, Zhu earned his Bachelor of Science degree in political science at Santa Clara University and was a four-year letterwinner in track and field and cross country. Zhu went on to earn his Master of Business Administration degree from Indiana University.

updated Oct. 19, 2026