As Louisville head coach Arthur Albiero has thrust himself into a household name after the Cardinal men’s 9th-place finish at NCAA’s last year, he has added another member to his coaching staff who is already a household name in the swimming community: Vlad Polyakov.
Polyakov is the most successful Alabama swimmer of the last decade, having won the 200 breaststroke NCAA Championship in both 2005 and 2007 (and finishing as runner-up in 2003 and 2006).
Polyakov is also a three-time Olympian for his native Kazakhstan (2004, 2008, and 2012) and a 2006 Asian Champion in the 50 breaststroke.
This hire fits in perfectly to the money-stroke that Albiero has built his program around: breaststrokes. Between Gisselle Kohoyda’s 4th place finish at NCAA’s in the 200 breast and Carlos Almeida’s NCAA Championship in the men’s 200 breaststroke, there’s little denying that Louisville is one of several rising breaststroke hotspots in the country, and Polyakov’s addition can only boost that reputation.