George Kennedy Retiring From Johns Hopkins After 31 Years

Photo Courtesy: JAY VANRENSSELAER/Johns Hopkins Athletics

George Kennedy, the longtime head coach of the Johns Hopkins men’s and women’s swimming teams, announced today that he will retire at the end of the season. Just the third coach in the last 48 years, Kennedy will step down on June 30 after 31 years at the helm of the highly successful programs.

“George Kennedy is the best swimming coach in the nation and has been recognized by his peers as the NCAA Division III Coach of the Year seven times,” said Director of Athletics Tom Calder. “He will be sorely missed by everyone in the Johns Hopkins University Athletics Department and also by all those who have been fortunate to get to know him on a personal basis. I wish George and his wife, Helen, all the best as they finally get to do some things they have put aside for so many years and I look forward to seeing him at future JHU events.”

Kennedy won 373 dual meets and 24 conference titles and has coached 29 national champions and more than 1,400 All-Americans. Under his leadership, Hopkins has maintained its place as one of the most dominant programs in the nation. At the NCAA Championships, the Blue Jays have finished in the top-10 an impressive 46 times, including 19 top-five finishes. Kennedy was also a part of the 28 consecutive conference titles won by the men’s team from 1971 through 1998. At the time, that streak was tied for the third-longest in any sport in Division III history.

“This is an emotional and difficult decision,” Kennedy said. “While there is never a good time for such an announcement, I know that this is the right time. Frank Comfort (head coach from 1968-77) and Tim Welsh (1977-85) set the bar extremely high, and we worked hard to attract the best and brightest swimmers to Johns Hopkins. This is the best job in the country and the relationships I have developed with the athletes, fellow coaches, our staff and all of the administrators were the best part of my time at Johns Hopkins.”

In 2012, Kennedy was awarded the Steadman Award, which is conferred annually to a swimming or diving coach at the high school, club, or university level who, in the opinion of the International Swimming Hall of Fame, Inc., the College Swimming Coaches Association of American (CSCAA) Forum, and the CSCAA, has done the most to spread happiness in Coach Steadman’s beloved sport of swimming and diving. Kennedy, who always wanted his swimmers to enjoy what they were doing, counts this as his favorite honor in his storied career

“Ultimately, the goal for every coach is to establish what is called “the silver bullet” – 100% buy-in (all in mentality) so that the athletes believe in themselves, their teammates, and the program,” noted Kennedy. “I am leaving a team that is all in, and they are ready for this change in direction.”

While the teams’ success in the pool has been well documented, Kennedy has attracted the type of student-athlete that can excel at Hopkins both in the classroom and in the pool. During his tenure at Johns Hopkins, Kennedy and the Blue Jays have recorded numerous awards for academic excellence from the CSCAA, while 12 members of the program have earned CoSIDA Academic All-America honors since 1997. Ana Bogdanovski, a 2015 graduate, was a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year and NCAA Postgraduate Scholar and in January, received the NCAA Today’s Top 10 Award. Alex Ladd was named both a 2013 CoSIDA Academic All-American as well as the NCAA Elite 89 Award winner for women’s swimming, while Eleanor Gardner earned a Rhodes Scholarship in 2013. In 2009, John Kegelman was named a First Team CoSIDA Academic All-American, the CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year, an NCAA Postgraduate Scholar and the ECAC Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

A 1977 graduate of the University of North Carolina, Kennedy was a four-year letter winner for the Tar Heels and an NCAA Division I qualifier in the 100 yard backstroke. After graduation, he remained at UNC to earn his master’s degree in physical education and serve as an assistant on the Tar Heels’ coaching staff. In 1980, he became head coach of the men’s and women’s swimming teams at Gettysburg College, where he compiled an impressive 77-31-2 dual meet record in five seasons.

Kennedy currently resides in Towson, MD, with his wife, Helen. They have two daughters; Catherine, a graduate of Mary Washington, and Sarah, a graduate of the University of North Carolina.

Johns Hopkins contributed this report.

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Roger Nekton

8 years ago

congratulations on a great coaching stint. I have admired how you have worked with hundreds of athletes, some came from my program. I always felt good about having one of my athletes apply to your school. Each of them had a wonderful time under your coaching. Enjoy your retirement, I can testify to how great it can be. Again, congrats and thanks.
Roger Nekton (retired Phillips Exeter)

M Linden

8 years ago

The best swimming coach in the nation, until one considers the Division III programs in Ohio. . But congratulations on a remarkable career and helpong to shape so many young lives.