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ODAC History
ODAC began in 1978 as part of Old Dominion
University’s Bounty - Rainbow program. The Bounty
Otters were coached by Larry Shopfe. At its inception, the
Bounty Otters Club numbered fifteen members. Larry Shopfe
left the team in 1980 to accept a coaching position in
Jacksonville, Florida. At that point in time, the parents of
Bounty Otters initiated the Club that would eventually become the
Old Dominion Aquatic Club(ODAC).
In 1980, Perry Lange was hired to coach the
Otters on a full time basis, and the name was changed to
ODAC. Perry Lange remained as Head Coach until 1984. He
was assisted by Bryon Kolding, Kevin Driscoll and Kim Wise.
During 1983, a full time Head Age Group Coach, Mike Anderson joined
the staff. In 1984, Mike and his wife Kathy left ODAC to
accept coaching positions with the Reno Nevada Swim
Team.
What began with the 15 Bounty Otters (in
1978) had grown to 85 swimmers by the fall of 1984. At that
time, the Club made a commitment to seek national ranking and
recognition. To achieve this goal, ODAC hired Bill Peak as
Head Coach.
Kentucky native, Bill Peak came to ODAC from
the Lakeside Swim Team in Louisville, Kentucky. Under Bill,
the goal identified in 1984 was realized. ODAC is now
nationally regarded as a proven and consitent force within USA
Swimming.
Upon Bill’s departure in the fall of
1993 for the Trinity Swim Team (Orlando, Florida) the Club launched
an extensive search that resulted in receipt of sixty-seven
applications from across the U.S., Canada and Europe. The
result of this process was the recruitment of Steve Bialorucki, a
young coach who already had established a formidable reputation
within the USA Swimming club establishment. Steve possesses a
degree of vitality that benefits not only ODAC, but also all of
Virginia Swimming. He is currently rated among the top ten
coaches in the country by ASCA (American Swimming Coaches
Association)
Under Steve’s leadership the number of
ODAC swimmers has grown from 65, when he first arrived here, to
over 200. We now have approximately 150 families involved in
ODAC. This growth, when combined with a number of ODAC
college swimmers during holidays and the summer, provides our
younger swimmers with a unique opportunity in their
sport.
ODAC Culture
Old Dominion Aquatics (ODAC) is a parent
-run organization dedicated to offering the finest in aquatic
instruction and training available anywhere. We are members in good
standing of USA Swimming, the National Club Swimming Association
and Virginia Swimming. Since our inception, we have had tremendous
success in competition and organizationally.
At ODAC we do more than just swim, we offer
a variety of social events throughout the year. Events ranging from
Inter-squad meets with a theme, "New Parents" picnic, Holiday Party
and Spring Banquet where we recognize our season accomplishments.
We also take the opportunity to recognize our graduating seniors
and present our two scholarships.
ODAC Coaches’
Philosophy
Competitive swimming is one of the best
amateur sports for our youth. The sport, and the people associated
with it, exemplify and build character, discipline, leadership,
self esteem, physical fitness and teamwork. These values are taught
and reinforced for use throughout a lifetime.
Coaches at ODAC believe that a successful
competitive program is not an accident. It is a well organized
activity that emphasizes a series of developmental stages and a
consistent philosophy of total involvement and personal challenge.
Coaches at ODAC believe that for a competitive program to succeed,
it must be built on the foundation created by a strong program for
younger swimmers. At a young age, ODAC swimmers begin their mastery
of stroke technique. As this mastery comes to fruition, the
swimmers begin to focus more on training and swimming
faster.
Mission
Statement
The mission of the Old Dominion Aquatic Club
is to promote competitive swimming as a USA Swimming team for
athletes at all levels of ability. We define success as sustained,
individual pursuit of excellence bounded only by our
swimmer’s desires and personal abilities, which allows them
to be the best they can be, achieve personal goals and have fun in
the program.
We maintain a system of personal values
among our swimmers: which are honesty, integrity and
sportsmanship.
We promote a team environment which encourages goal setting, hard
work, personal commitment and camaraderie.
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