Jason Roberts, Former Northern Kentucky Clipper Head Coach, Hired By Team Foxjet

Photo Courtesy: Northern Kentucky Clippers

Team Foxjet is pleased to announce the hiring of Jason Roberts as our new Head Coach! The staff and board are excited to welcome him aboard and as we approach the Fall-Winter Season, we will have further opportunities to get to know him. Please read the letter below from Mark Davis, Team President, which introduces Jason to our program …

From Mark Davis
July 10, 2015

Dear Team Foxjet Swimmers and Parents:

On behalf of the Team Foxjet Board, I’m very excited to announce the hiring of Jason Roberts, as our next great head coach of Team Foxjet. Jason has been with the Northern Kentucky Clippers for the past 17 years and built a powerhouse in the Cincinnati, Ohio LSC. His small team (200+/-) of swimmers competed against large and nationally prominent teams like the Cincinnati Marlins and Dayton Raiders and successfully won eight (8) Ohio state championships during his time there. Jason has also coached swimmers successfully to the highest levels of USA Swimming, including qualifying 14 swimmers for the Olympic Trails since 2008, multiple Junior and Sr. National Team members, a 5th place combined team finish at the 2014 NCSA Summer Junior Nationals, 58 swimmers to collegiate swimming since 2004, etc. Jason is considered by many to be one of the best young swim coaches in USA Swimming today. He has served in numerous leadership positions in the Ohio LSC and has served on the USA Swimming Senior Development Committee, as well. Jason was also named the Ohio Age Group and Senior Coach of the Year as well as the 2014 NCSA Junior National Coach of the Year in 2014.

Once Coach Roberts relocates his family to Minnesota, he will bring his wife Branden and their two children with him. We are very excited to have Jason and the entire Roberts family join us here at Team Foxjet. They will all be coming back to Minnesota in the near future and we will arrange a time for everyone to meet him in the next couple of weeks. Jason intends to get to work immediately and we expect great things from Coach Roberts for many years to come.

Here are a few excerpts from Jason’s letter to the board:

“My philosophy in coaching stems from one word…Teamwork. Without teamwork in what many perceive swimming is an individual sport, success is not possible. A stable, competitive team needs teamwork amongst swimmers, parents and coaches. Team success is a key component for individual success. If swimmers are working for a common goal much like team USA does every four years, they will see greater swims for themselves. Parents need a pride for the overall team. If they embrace team success, they will understand the importance it is for their child to achieve everything they are capable of. It also helps for parents to understand the ups and downs of the sport. Teamwork amongst the coaches is maybe the most important part. If a coaching staff is stable and cohesive, the rest of the team is going to fall in place. Coaches need to operate and believe in the same philosophies of technique and training in order to make it all work.

I consider my coaching style to be built on my passion for the sport. I don’t consider myself a yelling coach nor a pushover. I find myself coaching using the emotions that are needed for the moment. I gain the respect of the swimmers by proving I can build success in them through a strong coach/swimmer relationship. I am not there to be their friend but I am there to help guide them through all facets of the sport.

My training style is an I.M./middle distance background. Training all four strokes and middle distance allows for swimmers to explore all facets of the sport from sprint to distance from pool events to open water. I believe in working on mechanics every day in workout and feel the road to successful swimming also comes from the ability to kick underwater off every wall. When exploring my results over the years you will see that I have had multiple swimmers excel in all events from the 50 free to 5k/10k open water.”

Jason D. Roberts
Team Foxjet Head Coach
August 2015

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EXPERIENCE

Northern Kentucky Clippers – Head Coach (August 2004-2015)

Responsible for managing budget of $400,000.00 annually
Hire, maintain and educate coaching staff of 16 part-time coaches.
Primary Coaching Responsibility is National Group (20 swimmers)
Coach returning College Swimmers every summer
Coordinate and maintain administration staff of 3.
Coordinate celebrity clinics
Develop contract with Speedo for entire program 2004,2008,2012,2013
Clippers Board Member 2004 – Present
Organize Free Swim clinics for Summer Club Programs – 50 to 150 athletes
Develop all aspects of Annual Golf Outing – 2007 to 2015
Coach other groups seasonally (11-12 developmental and 13-14 elite)
Develop and design dryland program for entire team including the implementation of crossfit training.

Northern Kentucky Clippers – Head Age Group Coach (August 1998-2004)

Primary Coaching Responsibility was Elite 11-14 yr old
Developed and implemented Age Group Structure for team
Coached all age group during tenure
Assigned coaches to positions in age group program
Structured meet and practice schedules for all age groups

Kenton County YMCA – Program Director/Aquatic Director (June 1995 – August 1998)

Organized and operated all aspects of Youth Sports Program – Soccer, Basketball, T-Ball
Organized and operated all aspects of Aquatics Program – Swim Lessons, Swim Team, Lifeguards
Responsible for Pool Chemicals and maintaining the pool and surroundings

EDUCATION

Bachelor of Science – Northern Kentucky University (2010)
Physical Education and Health, Over 120 credit hours, primarily in Exercise Sports Science

COACHING AND OTHER LEADERSHIP POSITIONS

USA Swimming Senior Development Committee (2014-2017)
Ohio LSC Senior Vice-Chair -2011- 2014
2008-2014 Member of USA Swimming National Coaches List
2013 USA Swimming Open Water International Staff
USA Junior National Team Coaching Staff -2011-2014
USA Junior National Team Camp Coaching Staff – 2012
Ohio LSC Age Group Committee 2001 – 2012
Ohio LSC Zone Head Coach – 2002
Ohio LSC Zone Coach – 2000,2001,2002,2003
NCSA Head Coach Ireland All-Star Trip – 2010
NCSA Coach Hawaii All-Star Trip – 2006

COACHING ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Swimmers to College Swimming (as main coach to athlete since 2004)
43 Swimmers to Division 1 Programs, 15 Swimmers to Division 2&3 Programs

Personal Awards

1999 Ohio Age Group Coach of the Year
2006 American Swim Coaches Association “Certificate of Excellence”
2007 American Swim Coaches Association “Certificate of Excellence”
2010 Ohio Senior Coach of the Year
2012 American Swim Coaches Association “Certificate of Excellence”
2014 NCSA Coach of the Year
2014 American Swim Coaches Association “Certificate of Excellence”

Junior National/National Team Members

USA Junior National Team

2006 – Cory Chitwood
2010 – Ellen Williamson and Caitlyn Forman
2011 – Ellen Williamson
2012 – Ellen Williamson and Max Williamson
2013 – Max Williamson

USA National Team

2012 – Cory Chitwood

NCSA All Star Team

2007 – Claire Dickmann and Cory Chitwood
2010 – Ellen Williamson, Krissie Brandenburg and Caitlyn Forman
2011 – Max Williamson

Team Accomplishments

Top 50 in USA Swimming Virtual Club Championships 2007-2014
– Ranked Top 5 in club size (200-300 swimmers) 2010-2014
– USA Swimming Silver Medal Program
– Top 3 in 27 out of 29 JO Championship Meets (SCY and LCM combined)
– 8x Ohio JO Team Champions

National Level Meets

– 2014 NCSA Summer Junior Nationals Combined 5th place finish (15/16 swimmers scored)
– 2010, 2011 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 Top 16 combined finish at NCSA Junior Nationals
– 2 Olympic Trial Qualifiers 2008 (First two in team history) (18&unders)
– 8 Olympic Trial Qualifiers 2012 (6 of 8 =18Unders)
– 4 Olympic Trial Qualifiers 2016 (All 4 achieved as 18&unders)
– Swimmers qualify Top 8 at Nationals
– USA Junior National Champions

Swimmer Individual Accomplishments

– 2013 Open Water 10k Grand Prix World Champion – Emily Brunemann
– 2 Junior Pan Pac Participants
– Gold Medalist World Youth Championships (Meet Record)
– Top 8 finalist 2008 Olympic Trials
– 2 #1 National Top 10/16 swims
– Numerous Top 10/16 swims
– 3x NCAA Champion – Cory Chitwood
– 4 Swimmers score at NCAA’s (Cory Chitwood, Ellen Williamson, Sharli Brady, Krissi Brandenburg (Relay)

The above article is a press release submitted to Swimming World. To reach our audience, contact us at newsmaster@swimmingworld.com.

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