In this edition of BRSN’s new series, we caught up with recently appointed men’s swimming and diving head coach, Wes Newman, about his love for Cornell and expectations for the upcoming season:
Coach Newman takes over the Big Red men’s team this season due to the split of the men’s and women’s groups for the first time since 2009. He spent five years as an assistant coach for the program when the two squads were still united.
Newman is hardly a newcomer to Cornell, as the 2009 Applied Economics and Management graduate is one of the most accomplished Big Red swimmers of all time. He was a three-time Eastern champion, and qualified for the NCAA championships in both 2007 and 2009. In addition, he holds five individual and four school relay records. He was a two year team captain, four-time team Most Valuable Player, and recipient of the 2008 Richie Moran Award, which is given to a Cornell senior in the Red Key Athlete Honor Society who has demonstrated success in academics, athletics, and ambassadorship.
Newman has spent a number of years studying, swimming, and coaching here at Cornell, and he had this to say about his favorite part of this unique school: “From athletics, to academics, to Greek life, to student-run organizations, there is something for everyone. Having it all in a setting as beautiful as Ithaca is just an added bonus.”
However, Newman will surely have a different perspective this year, as he takes on his role as head coach. When asked what he brings to the program, Newman responded, “I’d like to think that my enthusiasm for swimming in general will carry over to our swimmers. I know that the guys on the team love what they do, and I want to be able to help them reach their potential both in the pool and out of it. I want to bring a positive energy onto the deck every day and motivate the team to get to the next level.” Newman hopes that this energy will help the squad to meet their collective goal of improving on last year’s positive momentum.
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