Bio
Hired at the age of 31, Mitch Dalton became one of the youngest leaders in the history of USA Swimming. As the current National Junior Team Director, his day to day job is to ensure the future success of the United States Olympic Swimming Team. Prior to his role at USA Swimming, Mitch was a coach at Princeton University. Coach of four Ivy League Team Championship Titles, he continued his collegiate success to the international stage, with TEAM USA winning every major junior international competition in each of his four years. Outside of his job at USA Swimming, Mitch is a passionate US masters’ swimmer – you can see his #Daily3000 yard workouts on his Instagram stories. Although a passionate student of Leadership, Mitch ironically folds all power and control to his three-year-old Wheaten Terrier named Rado.
Influences
Rob Orr
The greatest man in coaching that no one talks about - and he probably wants it that way. From Rob I learned the power in leading with authenticity, putting athletes in the drivers seat, listening before taking action, how to value the collective but still have high standards, the importance of humor, that you a have to “Swim Fast to Swim Fast” and that “Coaching isn’t [just] Coaching”. Things I did not learn from Rob; technology.
Susan Teeter
Not only is she one of the most successful coaches in the history of the Ivy League (any sport/any gender), she’s the woman who taught (and continues to teach) me to lean into conflict, be a professional, show up prepared (and early), challenge the status quo and never settle for a mediocre meal. Learn more about Teeter at her website: S.S. Teeter Associates.
Russell Mark
If there is a cute-and-simple way to describe how influential Russell Mark has been on every Olympic Team’s performance since 2004; email me and it will be the opening line of this paragraph. While I am waiting, let me just say that from Russell I learned how to sharpen my technical swimming eye (from the world’s technique leader), incorporate data & technology into coaching, and create a performance plan for success in any situation. By far, the greatest lesson I have learned from Russell is the importance of investing in people and relationships. With the foundation of a strong personal or professional relationship, teams can move mountains. Not for nothing, but the guy was an actual rocket scientist…haven’t learned that part yet.
Mike & Sara Lombardi
Sara is an Olympic rower, Mike an elite rower-turned elite coach-turned business school grad-turned WHOOP employee. Before all of that, they were my roommates for four years. I think it’s rare that a personal relationship can have such a profound impact on your professional life. Living with Mike & Sara was the equivalent of a four-year immersive think tank experience in; high performance, teams and human dynamics, bio mechanics, sport and clinical psychology, nutrition and all around huntin’ for excellence. The three of us, in our mid-late 20s, lived, ate, breathed, personal growth and athletic excellence. If you want to see proof that greatness is achieved through discipline and mind-numbing consistency…live with an athlete trying to make the Olympics (and her fiance)! These two have taught me to think outside the box, dream big, that struggles don’t keep you down forever, never stop reading, never stop learning and to lead with love. Learn more about them by visiting their company website Rowfficient