The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) have announced the recipients of the 2021-22 National Coaches of the Year award.
The NFHS annually honors coaches for the top 10 sports for girls and the top 10 sports for boys based on participation numbers. Additionally, they honor coaches in two other sports outside the top-10 (one for each gender), and a spirit coach. The honorees are selected by the NFHS Coaches Association based on achievements within their sport as well as their involvement in their communities and schools.
- All recipients can be found here.
Richard Blanc from Santa Margarita Catholic High School in California has been selected for the boys swimming and diving award. Blanc, who co-coaches both the girls and boys teams with his brother Ron Blanc, has been with Santa Margarita Catholic since 1996. Off of the pool deck, Blanc teaches international business.
This past year, Blanc led the boys team to their highest finish in school history at the 2022 CIF State Swimming & Diving Championships. The Santa Margarita Catholic boys captured the runner-up spot, while the girls team dominated their side of the meet to win by a 174 point margin. The boys placed 2nd in two out of three relays, while their highest individual finisher was Jaden Ficklen, who earned 4th in the 200 free (1:38.60).
Brookfield East’s Michael Rose was selected as the honoree for the girls swimming & diving coach of the year. Rose has served as the head coach of the Brookfield East girls team for 38 years. In addition to high school coaching, Rose also works with Elmbrook Swim Club, a 2022-2023 Gold Medal club under USA Swimming’s Club Excellence program. Off the pool deck, he teaches AP Calculus and is involved in tutoring and math competitions.
Brookfield East was the runner-up team behind Arrowhead at last November’s Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) Division I State meet. Their team was led by two WIAA record-holders: Lucy Thomas and Maggie Wanezek. Thomas, a Stanford commit, won the 100 breast in 58.89, breaking her own WIAA record from the previous year. Wanezek, a Wisconsin commit, also shattered her own WIAA record, winning the 100 back in 51.09. Brookfield East additionally captured state titles in the 200 medley relay and 400 freestyle relay.