Two-time Olympic Coach Mike Walker came to Gold Medal Swim School with fifteen years of collegiate coaching and fifteen years of competitive swimming, including three varsity years swimming at Arizona State University.
During his time as Head Coach at the University of California at Berkeley (1994-2000) and the University of Texas at Austin (2000-2007), Walker led his teams to eleven straight NCAA Division I Top 10 finishes and was named “Conference Coach of the Year” five times.
Walker’s vast international experience includes coaching at the Olympic Games (1996 and 2000), numerous World Championships, Commonwealth Games, Pan Pacific Games, Southeast Asian Games, Canadian World and Olympic Trials, Australian World and Olympic Trials.
Domestically, he has coached over 300 individual Division I All-American honorees, numerous individual NCAA Division I collegiate titles, and multiple United States National Team and individual titlists. He has coached athletes who have competed at every major international competition in the world - producing titles, medals, and records including Olympic Gold Medals and American and World Records.
In July 2005, Walker decided it was time to make a change in his career, get back to the basics of swimming, and allow his passion for swimming to influence children’s discovery of the joy of water. Walker partnered with Mike Troy in 2006 and founded Gold Medal Swim School. Once the partnership was formed, Troy and Walker constructed a state-of-the-art teaching facility in Chandler, Arizona. They opened the doors in 2007.
Walker has taken his passion for coaching and directed it to teaching Olympic-level fundamentals to new and experienced swimmers. His belief is that swimming should be clear, easy to understand, and fun. He says, “We want people to understand that learning Olympic-level fundamentals should begin at the start of the swimmer's aquatic experience.”
This philosophy resonates through the Gold Medal Swim School curriculum in each program and level. It encourages teachers and swimmers to enjoy the learning process because the approach is clear, simple, and fun.
Each program and level at Gold Medal Swim School is based on our Core Values: Safety, Air Regulation, Relaxation, Body Position, and Propulsion.
We hope to inspire everybody to embrace swimming as a lifelong and lifesaving activity.
