By Anne Lepesant on SwimSwam
Arizona State University swimming and diving has announced that Dave Salo, a 2010 inductee into the American Swimming Coaches Association Hall of Fame, will serve as associate head coach beginning in the 2024-25 season.
Head coach Herbie Behm made the announcement on Wednesday afternoon, saying, “Dave Salo is a swimming icon. He’s a thinker who has pushed the sport forward for over 30 years and someone I’ve looked up too my entire career. Everything one can achieve as a swim coach, he’s achieved. I’m so lucky to be able to work with someone like Dave and I know the team will be in great hands with his leadership.”
Salo will join Behm, head diving coach Marc Briggs, and assistant coaches Derek Schmitt, Logan Hirka, Austin Pillado, Alex Sherman, and Sam Iida in Tempe next fall. Behm, who had been associate head coach since 2022, took the reins of the Sun Devils swimming and diving program on April 1st, when head coach Bob Bowman accepted the director of swimming role at the University of Texas.
The 2024-25 season will be Salo’s first collegiate campaign since retiring from the head coaching position at USC in 2020. He had led the Trojans for 14 years, finishing among the top 6 teams at NCAA Championships eight times (4 women/4 men), and producing 165 All-Americans (89 women/76 men) during his tenure.
While Salo retired from coaching at USC, he continued to be active at Irvine Novaquatics, as head coach of the ISL’s Tokyo Frog Kings, and at Orange Coast College where he was an assistant coach to former NOVA swimmer Anthony Iacopetti. Salo has also coached the recently created ProNOVA group at NOVA.
He said, “Herbie is one of the brightest and curious coaches in the country. I would not have considered collegiate coaching again with anyone else,” said Dave Salo. “I look forward to a partnership with Herbie to continue to advance and promote the Sun Devil program.”
In addition to coaching at NOVA and USC, Salo has been a USA Swimming National Coach several times, including at FINA World Championship in 2013 and 2015 (head women’s coach) and 2005 World Championships (head men’s coach), and at the 2000, 2004 and 2012 Olympic Games (assistant coach).
Read the full story on SwimSwam: Former USC Coach Dave Salo Tapped for Associate Head Coach at Arizona State