Competitor Coach of the Month: Sergio Lopez Miro

Competitor Coach of the Month is a recurring SwimSwam feature shedding light on a U.S.-based coach who has risen above the competition. As with any item of recognition, Competitor Coach of the Month is a subjective exercise meant to highlight one coach whose work holds noteworthy context – perhaps a coach who was clearly in the limelight, or one whose work fell through the cracks a bit more among other stories. If your favorite coach wasn’t selected, feel free to respectfully recognize them in our comment section.

The Virginia Tech H20kies have had a very strong start to the new year, as head coach Sergio Lopez Miro and his staff have led their swimmers to some standout performances in dual meets against UVA and Penn State.

On Jan. 15, the Virginia Tech men rolled to a decisive 187-113 decision over the Cavaliers, while the women’s team put together a strong effort against the reigning NCAA champions, falling 193-107. On the men’s side, Youssef Ramadan and Antani Ivanov knocked off three individual wins apiece, and the teams turned the page to Penn State on Jan. 22 where they performed even better.

Ramadan roared to a pair of individual wins in the men’s 100 free (42.44) and 100 fly (45.34), setting a VT pool record in the latter, while Ivanov clocked a season-best of 1:42.85 to win the 200 fly. The men also had Carles Coll Marti claim two wins while registering a lifetime best in the 50 free (19.82) and a season-best in the 200 free (1:35.73), and Luis Dominguez won the 500 free (4:23.70) and 1000 free (9:09.63), the latter being a new PB.

On the women’s side, the H20kies won all but one event against Penn State, with Reka Gyorgy leading the way with three individual wins, including a new best time in the 200 breast (2:15.39).

Emma Atkinson, who tied a VT record by placing fourth in the 200 back at last year’s NCAAs, had a very strong meet as well, recording a pair of season-bests en route to victory in the women’s 100 back (52.49) and 200 back (1:52.52).

With Lopez Miro at the helm, Virginia Tech appears to be on an excellent trajectory in the lead-up to the ACC Championships in February and the NCAA Championships in March.

The team will host the Virginia Tech Invitational next weekend before ACCs Feb. 16-19 in Atlanta.

“Our team is in a very good position,” Lopez Miro told VT Athletics after the Penn State meet. “We got to race at a high level and had some pretty good times. All of our coaches believe we are on the right path.”

About Competitor Swim

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