THE FLATS – Georgia Tech swimming and diving announced Wednesday that Chico Rego has been promoted to associate head coach.
Rego enters his fifth season on the Yellow Jackets coaching staff and has made an immediate impact, both in Tech’s performance in the pool and in the recruiting rankings.
“I’m excited to promote Chico to associate head coach,” Toni M. And Richard L. Bergmark Swimming and Diving Head Coach Courtney Shealy Hart said. “He is a terrific coach and his mentorship to our student-athletes has been tremendous. He has been a great addition to our coaching staff since he joined us in 2019 and this is a deserved new role for him.”
During his time on The Flats, Rego has helped produce four individual ACC swimming championships and helped coach swimmers to more than 15 NCAA All-America honors, including seven-time NCAA All-American and Tokyo Olympian Caio Pumputis, who won three ACC titles.
Also under Rego’s tutelage on the men’s team has been six-time NCAA All-American Christian Ferraro and two-time All-American, Tokyo Olympian and 2021 ACC Champion Batur ÜNLÜ. On the women’s side, he has also helped coached five-time NCAA Qualifier and CSCAA Scholar All-American McKenzie Campbell, 2021 NCAA Qualifier and CSCAA Scholar All-American Brooke Switzer and Rei Kuramoto, who is top 5 in three events in school history, including the record holder in the 200 IM.
Outside of the pool, Rego has also been instrumental in Georgia Tech’s recruiting performance, scoring an honorable mention by SwimSwam for its 2021 recruiting class.
Rego joined the Yellow Jackets with nearly 15 years of coaching experience, both on the world’s stage for Brazil and in Auburn. He’s coached swimmers to more than 15 national championship and world championship medals, as well as nearly 100 state championship medals.
He returned to the international stage for a brief stint in 2021 to coach with Brazil in the Short Course Worlds.
Prior to Team Greenville, Rego coached for two-plus years at Auburn and with the Auburn Pro Team “Tiger Elite” club. During that time, Rego coached a myriad of world-class swimmers.
Rego earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education from Estácio de Sá University in 2009 in Rio De Janeiro. While working at Auburn, Rego also earned a master’s degree in exercise physiology in 2017.
Rego resides in Atlanta, Ga., with his wife, Dr. Kat McKinney and their daughter Juliana.
Alexander-Tharpe Fund
The Alexander-Tharpe Fund is the fundraising arm of Georgia Tech athletics, providing scholarship, operations and facilities support for Georgia Tech’s 400-plus student-athletes. Be a part of developing Georgia Tech’s Everyday Champions and helping the Yellow Jackets compete for championships at the highest levels of college athletics by supporting the Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which directly provides scholarships for Georgia Tech student-athletes. To learn more about supporting the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.
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