Where does a team go after We’ve grown older and wiser having been proclaimed doing what we love best.” And what CUBU coaches the gold standard—and have done best is use swim- then repeatedly backing ming to develop character and invaluable life skills. it up at local, regional, “In the early years, we national and internation- were all young and naive and thought that making al levels? Well, they keep an Olympic team was just a b y m i c h a e l j. s t o t t given,” says Curl. And while going forward! p h o t o s p r o v i d e d b y c u r l b u r k e s w i m c l u b CUBU coaches and swimmers have found considerable success n May, Curl Burke held a gala on the international stage, the endur- to honor its past U.S. Olympians ing quality of Curl Burke efforts has been , , in the staying power, characterized by doing IRoque Santos, and (in things differently from other clubs. absentia) and introduce the club’s 18-and-growing The key? Following a carefully crafted operat- number of 2012 Olympic Trials qualifiers. ing plan that today allows CUBU to service a member- While fellowship flowed among team members, par- ship from newborns to Masters and beyond. ents and honored guests, founding fathers Rick Curl, Jeff King and Pete Morgan reflected upon the legacy A REPUTATION OF COMPETITIVE EXCELLENCE of the 1978 business plan. From a one-pool operation, Throughout the years, Curl Burke’s reputation Curl Burke has expanded to 19 sites in two states and — continued on 2 the District of Columbia, making it the nation’s largest satellite swim program. In addition, the purpose-built t o p p h o t o » Curl Burke coaches Rick Curl (center), Jeff King (far left) and Pete Morgan (far right) gathered with CUBU’s U.S. Olympians (from left) Tom Tom Dolan Swim School opened in April 2011 and Dolan, Roque Santos, Mark Henderson and Mike Barrowman at a recent offers lessons only to newborns through adults. gala that honored the club’s elite alumni. (Not pictured: Ed Moses.) While the structure may have changed in 34 years, l e f t p h o t o » Heading into this summer’s meet in June, Curl Burke had “our philosophy hasn’t varied at all,” says Curl. “We qualified 94 individuals since 1984 for the U.S. Olympic Trials. (Pictured, from always want to provide a positive, competitive envi- left: current U.S. Olympic Trials qualifier Katie Ledecky with Susan O’Brien ronment to enable swimmers to be the best that they Williams—CUBU’s first Trials qualifier and national champion in 1984.) can be.” Echoes Morgan, “Chasing competitive excel- r i g h t p h o t o » Curl Burke Swim Club has enjoyed an annual swimmer lence with your friends has been a winning formula. exchange with the Carlile Swim Club in Sydney, Australia, since 2004.

July 2012 1 curl burke — l e f t » Curl continued from 1 Burke has won five NCSA has been built Junior National upon competi- Championship titles, with its most recent tive excellence— triumph coming in March. at virtually every (Pictured: Curl Burke’s level. Since 1984, 2010 team that competed in Curl Burke has quali- Orlando, Fla.) fied 94 individuals for Much of the training the U.S. Olympic Trials. for senior swimmers is Thirty have made the final in preparation for college eight, with five qualifying programs. “It is an impor- for the United States Olympic tant part of what we do,” team. Two—Tom Dolan and says Curl, noting that each Mike Barrowman—have been year more than 60 swimmers inducted into the International graduate from high school. In Hall of Fame. excess of 90 percent of recent Curl Intrinsic to that excellence has Burke graduates are now swimming been the development of individu- in colleges across the country. al talent through consistent training plans. TRAVELING AROUND THE WORLD “When I designed my training plan If Curl Burke swimmers seem omni- and workouts during a season, it was present, it is because they are. always with the idea of challenging the “There is a notion by some that our club is best swimmer in the group,” says Curl. “If too large,” says Curl, “and that we should do swimmers train with a dynamic, goal-oriented well. My feeling is that we are not too big until plan, over the long haul they’ll develop their we get to the point where we cannot service each physiology so that they will be as fast as they can and every swimmer regardless of level. be. We strictly focus on the long term with season “We do something a lot of clubs don’t do,” he plans that emphasize aerobic conditioning, technical says. “We travel around the world. We seek out long excellence, sound nutrition, compatible school sched- course opportunities that are especially important for ules and programmed rest,” he says. those with international aspirations. For example, we CUBU’s training progressions and the promotion of go to Sydney biannually, to Luxembourg annually and intra-team competition have been vital in Curl Burke’s take our best 9-to-14-year-olds to Arizona every year.” continued top three national placement in the Virtual Spring 2012 was no different, with the highest-level Club championship standings (including first place athletes going to the UltraSwim in Charlotte, NCSA yards and long course finishes since 2009) qualifiers going to Orlando and Richmond, not to and its five first-place conclusions (including 2012) at mention the 170 swimmers and 14 coaches who went NCSA Junior Nationals. “Nothing markets the brand to Greensboro or the 60 9-and-unders who traveled to like terrific swimming,” says Morgan. Iona College. Another bonus is that age group excellence natu- The benefit? “The concept of team and all the things rally filters into CUBU’s top training groups. Of the we think important,” says Curl. team’s more than 70 coaches, eight sites are charged “Travel is emphasized because it gives children with full-time senior swimming commitments. On opportunities to leave their comfort zones and make Sundays from 6 to 9 a.m., the team brings together its decisions. For example, when kids are in a hotel room top 60 senior swimmers, regardless of home training away from parents, they have a choice of whether they location, for combined workouts. “There we have eight are going to stay up all night or not. We ensure that coaches, assign swimmers by specialties, and train and they have a safe environment, and at the beginning of race them,” says Curl. “It’s a great opportunity for the first day, the head coach meets with coaches and the coaches and swimmers to work together at local athletes to remind them, ‘You’ve all signed a code of 50-meter facilities in northern Virginia.” conduct—same as the Olympic Trials qualifiers sign— The combined workouts are now offered to age and you are expected to adhere to every one of the groupers with separate practices for top 13-to-15-year- rules. If you do, you are going to have a great time and olds and 9-to-12s. “Kids are meeting and racing other wonderful experience. Curl Burke swimmers, getting to know Curl Burke “Plus, from a competitive standpoint, we think get- coaches, terminologies, personalities and the like. We ting out of the Potomac Valley area is really healthy for believe this invigorating aspect of our training pro- all of our kids because in any local area, you establish a gram will empower our athletes to greater success.” — continued on 3

2 July 2012 curl burke — l e f t » Curl Burke coaches continued from 2 regularly attend the pecking order with the American Swimming Coaches teams and individuals World Clinic, regional and local clinics. The team also conducts you swim against regu- an annual three-day coaches larly,” he says. In short, retreat and symposium. (Pictured: Curl values the socializa- 2011 retreat at Deep Creek Lake, Md.) tion, maturation and differ- ent competitive opportunities tion,” notes Curl. “As we grew that the travel brings. and mentored more coaches, it made sense for those coaches to GIVING TO THE NEXT GENERATION extend our program to different From 2004-09, Curl spent more structures and facilities,” he says. than four years Down Under, work- “The master plan was not to have ing with legendary Australian coach- 19 facilities, but what we have now es and owners Forbes Carlile, John keeps us active, challenged and is great Coutts, Richard Calahan and their swim for swimmers and families. In the end, schools. Curl was attracted to the quality, we feel that everything we accomplish structure and professionalism reflected in enhances the development of the swimmer Carlile Swimming’s more than 60 years of in and out of the water.” innovation, research and experience. In partnership with his former Olympian, Curl CUBU BY THE NUMBERS opened the Tom Dolan Swim School. “This will be a • 5 American Olympians successful business entity and clearly is a great thing • 8 International Olympians for the community,” says Curl. Strictly a learn-to-swim • 11 World Records set by four CUBU swimmers program and originally just for newborns to 9-year-olds, • 14 Senior National Championship Team titles the program has since been extended to adults. • 14 Current coaches with more than 15 CUBU “A lot of teams have swim schools, but there are years of service not a lot of purpose-built swim school pools. Ours in • 8 Junior National Team titles Loudoun County is a shallow-water pool, just three- • 5 NCSA titles and-one-half feet deep, kept at 92 degrees, and includes • 25 USA National team representations ledges for newborns and babies,” he says. • 260 National Age Group Championship titles Of course, it is entirely possible that some of those since 1979 graduates may gravitate to year-round swimming or— • 8 USA national teams coached by CUBU staff like many past CUBU athletes—return to coach. • 11 years (since 2002) that CUBU has been a USA The reason? “They’ve felt good about what they’ve Swimming Gold Medal Club gotten out of the sport—and from Curl Burke specif- • 1999 year CUBU was named the USA Swimming ically—and they want to return and give to the next team with the most Scholastic All Americans generation. It isn’t due to financial reward, I can tell you that,” says Curl, “although we are doing every- USA SWIMMING ACCOMPLISHMENTS thing we can to professionalize our coaches so we can Virtual Club Championships All USA Teams keep them throughout their careers.” Scholastic All-Americans Seven former CUBU swimmers are currently full 2011-2012 SCY - 1st time coaches for Curl Burke. An additional eight coach LCM - 1st on a part time basis. “The values, passion and satisfac- tion carry on,” he says. 2010-2011 SCY - 1st Men - 10 In addition to the more than 70 professional USA LCM - 1st Women - 14 Swimming credentialed coaches, Curl Burke Swim Club employs an excellent administrative staff of six. 2009-2010 SCY - 1st Men - 9 The main office, led by former CUBU swim mom, Fran LCM - 2nd Women - 4 Ward, has more than 50 years of dedicated service to CUBU. Tom Ugast, who coached with CUBU in the 2009-2010 SCY - 1st Men - 9 early ’80s, has returned to offer invaluable day-to-day LCM - 2nd Women - 4 operational support to Curl. 2008-2009 SCY - 2nd Men - 3 IMPROVING UPON THE MASTER PLAN LCM - 2nd Women - 9 It is 2012, and Curl, King and Morgan still roam the deck. Their 1978 partnership was designed to fill 2007-2008 SCY - 2nd a “crying need for more teams, facilities and competi- LCM - 3rd — continued on 4

July 2012 3 TRAINING SITES AND STAFF Entry level through Olympic Trials qualifiers CUBU MAIN OFFICE Since 1983 Office Address P.O. Box 359 Vint Hill/Freedom Center (Manassas/ Damascus, MD 20872 Warrenton Aquatic and Recreation Center/ Phone: 301-428-9493 Manassas Park Pool Fax: 301-831-8677 Head coach Olympian E-mail: [email protected] Entry level through Olympic Trials qualifiers Since 2008 During the indoor season, Curl Burke utilizes 19 training sites. In the summer, the team shifts to Marymount University 8 x 50 meter training facilities. Head coach Mike Clark Entry level through NCSA MARYLAND/DC Since 2010 Georgetown Preparatory School Head coach Yuri Suguiyama Claude Moore Recreation Center First location in 1978 with new facility in 2006 Head coach Robbie Robins Train entry level swimmers to Olympic Trials Entry level through NCSA qualifiers qualifiers Since 2007

Montgomery College - PROGRAMS OFFERED Germantown/Quince Orchard Swim School Program Head coach Rob Washburn Dulles 28 Centre — Tom Dolan Swim School Entry level to NCSA qualifiers Purpose-built facility for newborns to adults Since 1981 Currently offering more than 1100 lessons per week Opened April 2011 The American University/ Holton Arms School/Lab School American University Head coach Tim Kelly More than 375 lessons per week Swim School through Olympic Trials qualifiers Since 1988 Age Group/Senior Program Entry level to Olympic Trials qualifiers Prince Georges Sport & Learning 1857 USA Swimming registered swimmer (2012) Head coach Corey Wallace 72 USA Swimming registered coaches (2012) Entry level through Sectional qualifiers Since 1999 Developmental Stroke School Program Predominantly summer league and high school- NORTHERN VIRGINIA focused swimmers Tysons Corner YWCA September-May schedule Head coaches John Flanagan/Marilyn Mangels 1,143 registered swimmers (ages 6-18) *Nadar Por Vida outreach program Since 1979 Diversity/Outreach Program * Award winning program for at-risk Latinos and Nadar Por Vida teens Masters Program Burke Racquet & Swim Club 625 USMS registered Masters swimmers — Head coach Pete Morgan nation’s second largest Masters team Swim lessons through Olympic Trials qualifiers 15 locations Since 1988 Coach Education Lee District Park/Mt. Vernon/ CUBU coaches regularly attend the American George Washington Recreation Center/ Swimming Coaches World Clinic, regional and Providence Recreation Center local clinics. Team annually conducts a three-day Head coach Jeff King and Matt Murray coaches retreat. v

4 July 2012