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Charlie Griffiths Speaks at 50th American Swimming Coaches Association World Clinic
Posted: Sep 06, 2018

Charlie Griffiths Speaks at 50th American Swimming Coaches Association World Clinic

CLAREMONT, Calif. - Claremont-Mudd-Scripps swimming and diving coach Charlie Griffiths was one of the featured speakers at the 50th American Swimming Coaches Association World Clinic on Tuesday, Sept. 5 in Anaheim.

The title of the Griffiths' one-hour talk was "Building a Championship Conference Team". The one-hour presentation featured an outline of how the CMS Athenas and Stags built and sustained a championship culture in the increasingly competitive SCIAC conference. The process-oriented approach focused on the tenets of academic success, continuous improvement, positive citizenship and having fun.

In his 18th season at the helm at CMS, Griffiths has built one of the top Division III programs in the country. His teams have compiled a 232-14 dual meet record in SCIAC competition, and a 288-75 overall meet record. Fifteen times, his teams have won the ASCA Award for Excellence, while his squads have combined to win 192 SCIAC individual titles and 24 SCIAC team titles. He has coached 12 CMS athletes who have won the SCIAC Swimmer of the Year or Diver of the Year Award

In addition to his coaching duties, Griffiths is an Associate Professor of Physical Education at CMS. In 2009, Griffiths won the Glen R. Huntoon Award for Superior Teaching at Claremont McKenna College and was the first athletic department member to win the award since its inception in 1974. He also won the SCIAC's initial "Men's Coach of the Year" award in 2015 and was also named the "Women's Coach of the Year" in 2017. Griffiths chaired the SCIAC swimming coaches committee for nine years and served for five years as the NCAA D-III men's representative to the board of directors of the College Swimming Coaches Association. 

Other speakers at the ASCA World Clinic in Anaheim, a five-day event which runs through Sunday, include past US Olympic Team Coaches Dave Durden (Cal Berkeley), David Marsh (Team Elite), David Salo (University of Southern California), and Gregg Troy (University of Florida).