Biographical details | |
---|---|
Born | Altamont, Kansas | January 2, 1934
Alma mater | California State University, Los Angeles ('60) |
Playing career | |
1951-1952 | East Los Angeles Jr. College |
1952-1953 | Occidental College |
1956-1957 | U.S. Navy All Navy Swim Team |
Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
Swimming Coach 1958-1990 | |
1958-1963 | Rosemead High School California |
1958-1965 | Rosemead Swim Club Evenings |
1963-1965 | Arcadia High School |
1965-1967 | Pasadena City College City of Commerce Club |
1967-1971 | Long Beach State Phillips 66 Swim Club |
1968-1984 | U.S. Olympic Coach 5 Summer Olympics |
1971-1973 | Harvard University |
1973-1990 | University of Alabama |
1990-2007 | Assoc. Athlet. Director University of Alabama |
Head coaching record | |
Overall | 48-3 (Long Beach State) 237 of 269 (Alabama) .864 Percentage [1] 300 total wins, all teams |
Accomplishments and honors | |
Championships | |
3 Southeastern Conference team titles: Men-(1982, 1987) Women –(1985) Top Ten NCAA Finishes-16 U.S. Olympic Asst. Coach 1968-1980 Olympic Head Coach 1984 | |
Awards | |
USA Swimming Award 4 time SEC Coach of the Year 1985 Scholastic Coach of the Year International Swimming Hall of Fame | |
Donald Lee Gambril (born January 2, 1934) is an American former Hall of Fame swimming coach who is best known for coaching the University of Alabama from 1973 to 1990. His Alabama teams had top ten NCAA finishes eleven times, 3 Southeastern Conference titles, and were the runner-up at the NCAA Championship in 1977. Earlier, his Long Beach State teams had top ten NCAA finishes four times from 1968-71. He had the rare distinction of serving as a U.S. Olympic coach in five Olympics from 1968 to 1984.[2][3]