Sandpipers of Nevada head coach Ron Aitken has been spotted on deck at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics
Aitken was not named to the official U.S. Olympic swim team staff after the U.S. Olympic Trials, even though three of his swimmers made the team: distance specialists Erica Sullivan, Katie Grimes, and Bella Sims. This raised eyebrows, especially given that two of the swimmers are very young amid a staff of coaches that primarily work with collegiate and professional swimmers, but USA Swimming and the USOPC managed to get him to Tokyo afterall.
He was also the youth coach of Bowe Becker who was on the gold-medal-winning 4×100 free relay alongside Blake Pieroni who represents the Sandpipers in national competitions but has not regularly trained there.
He has been seen on deck standing with the other U.S. Olympic swim coaches during the meet and coaching swimmers. We reached out to USA Swimming staff to confirm Aitken’s specific role in Tokyo, but they have not responded. This is not the first time that a coach has been added to the Olympic staff in an unannounced and ambiguous role – Yuri Suguiyama, then a Cal assistant and now the Wisconsin head coach, was with the U.S. team in Rio, though he was never actually listed as a member of the staff.
This means Aitken was on deck to see Sullivan win silver in the first-ever women’s 1500 free Olympic final, completing a 1-2 USA finish behind Katie Ledecky.
Aitken and Sarasota Sharks’ Brent Arckey both accompanied the U.S. Olympic swim team to training camp in Hawaii before the Games.
Brent Arckey was originally named an official member of the coaching staff.
He was officially named a member of the staff for the Hawaii camp, not the Olympics.
OMG, as of this writing there is unanimous praise and upvoting for Coach Aitken being in Tokyo on a SwamSwam comments section. Unprecedented. Coach Aitken is the hero we deserve, our silent guardian, a watchful protector for USA Swimming.
And not a single downvoted comment either! Until….this one 🙁
I ruined it. I shouldn’t of said anything.
I’m so glad that he’s there! I was a young teenage girl traveling with a mostly male staff on my first international trip (in a different sport) and having my own coach there made me so much more comfortable. He missed the first few days and I was so uncomfortable. Really glad he’s there for Bella and Katie, as well as his other swimmers.
Well deserved coach Ron. Coach Brent should have been there as well. USA swimming is a bunch of politics. Club swimmers are killing it!
A well-deserved appointment. Smart move on somebody’s part!
Erica Sullivan’s swim was epic. And Katie Grimes will swim her PB too. He better be there.
Erica Sullivan swam a brilliant 1500 free last night.
Awesome that her coach got to witness her performance.
He’ll treasure that memory forever.
He best be