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COACHES – SUMMER 2021
Alexandra Kouzas
Head Coach & Coach Practice Time 1: SR1 and SR 2
Coach Alex grew up in South Africa and swam competitively for 13 years. In 2013, she moved to Canada to continue swimming, while attending the University of British Columbia. Alex’s best stroke has always been Freestyle (sprints), with the 50m Free being her favourite event. She competed at the National and International level for South Africa and, in 2012, qualified for the South African Olympic Trials.
Her proudest swimming moment, however, was after she took a year off swimming in 2015 and then returned and qualified for the 2016 Canadian Olympic Trials. Shortly after the Trials, Alex partially tore her bicep tendon and supraspinatus which meant, unfortunately, that she had to take some time off training. She attempted to make a return to the pool, but soon after decided that it was time to hang up her goggles.
Alex has coached for the Vancouver Vikings Swim Club for six years. Having worked her way up from the MV2 group, all the way through to the P1 group this Summer. Currently, she is the Head Coach for the Vancouver Vikings and also the UBC Masters Swim Club for adults.
Alex graduated from UBC in 2019, with a major in Psychology and a minor in Special Education. She is now finishing up her second degree at UBC in the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program (IB PYP) to teach elementary school education.
Alex prides herself on being a technical coach, who is able to create a fun and supportive environment for all her swimmers. She is extremely excited to be coming back as both the head coach and group coach this Summer and cannot wait to get to know each of the swimmers in her group!
Alexandra’s email address is coachalex@vancouvervikings.com.
Hugh Dauvergne
Assistant Head Coach - floating between groups as needed
Hugh is very excited to be the assistant head coach this summer! Hugh will be floating between groups assisting Alex and the other coaches where needed.
Hugh spent the last 10 years both swimming and coaching for the Vancouver Pacific Swim Club where he was a provincial medalist and an age group national qualifier. Although Hugh never swam or coached with Vikings before this summer, he is no stranger to the coaching team. In fact, Hugh swam competitively with Coach Alex and Coach Mackenzie, and has won high school provincial medals swimming with Coach Sam.
Currently, Hugh is completing a Bachelor of Arts at the University of Toronto with a major in History.
Hugh’s coaching style emphasizes fun and technique and he can’t wait to contribute positively to the already amazing Vikings community.
Go Vikings!!
Mackenzie Gunther
Practice Time 2: Coach Senior 2 and Intermediate 1
Mackenzie joined the Vikings in 2011 as a swimmer in the Junior group, and over the next four summers became a provincial medalist and record holder. She then joined VPSC where she swam for the next three years. Mackenzie swam at UBC where she was a member of the UBC Thunderbird Swim team. She just graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and will be attending a Master’s program in the fall in Global Affairs.
Mackenzie has been a Vikings Winter Maintenance coach for the past five years and was the MV1 coach in the summer of 2019. She has also coached for the UBC Masters Swim team. Mackenzie is so excited to continue to be a part of the Vikings family this summer and pass on her knowledge and passion of the sport to her swimmers.
Mackenzie G’s email address is coachmgunther@vancouvervikings.com.
Hadley Gunther
Practice Time 3: Coach, INT2
Coach Hadley is thrilled to be returning to coach with the Vikings this summer! Having coached MV2 for the past two seasons she is very excited to be coaching INT2 this summer. Hadley has swam from the Vikings for 9 summer seasons. When she wasn’t swimming, Hadley played water polo competitively throughout high school and competed at the 2017 USA Junior Olympics along with earning a silver medal at the U19 Canadian National Championships in 2018.
Hadley is currently attending the University of Calgary majoring in History with a goal to graduate in 2023 and pursue an after degree in Nursing.
In her spare time Hadley enjoys playing volleyball, making awesome playlists on Spotify and watching Jeopardy!
She can’t wait to meet the INT2s and get the season underway!
Hadley’s email address is coachhadley@vancouvervikings.com.
Sam Watanabe
Practice Time 4: Coach JR1
Sam is looking forward to another great season with the Vikings this year! He is currently pursuing a bachelor’s of science degree studying pharmacology and toxicology at the University of Toronto and is thrilled to be returning to Vancouver for the summer.
Sam has spent many seasons as a swimmer with the Vikings, and was coach for the MV3 group in 2019. He has also spent many hours teaching at learn-to-swim programs as well as coaching his high school swim team.
Sam is quite the outdoorsman, so when he’s not on deck, he likes to spend his time at the beach or exploring the mountains! This year, he will be returning as coach for the JR1 group and can’t wait for the season to get underway.
Brett Caswell
Practice Time 5: Coach, JR2
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As a long-time member of the Vancouver Vikings since 2011, Brett has always taken great pleasure returning to the summer season and is beyond excited for the 2021 season.
In his first season as a group coach, Brett hopes to make this summer enjoyable and memorable for the JR2 swim group.
When reflecting upon the quintessential experience of summer swimming, Brett is reminded of water gun fights, scores of potlucks, and swim meets that were as exhausting as they were fun. Although these activities may not be possible this year, Brett is confident that the Vikings spirit will persevere!
Brett’s previous coaching experience comes as a Vikings Junior Leader (volunteer coach), an assistant coach, and as a Vikings Winter Maintenance group coach. He is also completing his certification in Swimming Canada’s National Coaching Certification Program. Brett is currently completing his final year at Kitsilano Secondary School, and will be attending UBC in the fall, pursuing a degree in Science. Away from the pool deck, Brett enjoys reading, cooking, and jogging.
Eager for the summer season to start, Brett can’t wait to improve the technique, morale, and speed of the JR2 swimmers!
Maya Kennedy
Practice Time 6: Coach, MV
Maya is ecstatic to be joining the Vikings team for her first summer as a group coach and sixth season overall! Having been an assistant coach for two years and a group coach through two Winter Maintenance sessions, she is looking forward to working with the Mini Vikings this summer and developing young swimmers into athletes.
Having started as an anxious swimmer who was terrified of diving and developing into a two-time Provincial Championship finalist, Maya strives to foster resilience, leadership, and a lifelong passion for fitness in her swimmers.
A current grade 12 student at Kitsilano Secondary, Maya will be attending the University of Pennsylvania in the fall to study economics and life sciences. She enjoys picnics at the beach, road trips with good coffee, and (of course) being at the pool. GO VIKS!!!
COACHES – FALL/WINTER 2021
Alexandra Kouzas
Head Coach & Practice Times 1, 3 & 4
Coach Alex grew up in South Africa and swam competitively for 13 years. In 2013, she moved to Canada to continue swimming, while attending the University of British Columbia. Alex’s best stroke has always been Freestyle (sprints), with the 50m Free being her favourite event. She competed at the National and International level for South Africa and, in 2012, qualified for the South African Olympic Trials.
Her proudest swimming moment, however, was after she took a year off swimming in 2015 and then returned and qualified for the 2016 Canadian Olympic Trials. Shortly after the Trials, Alex partially tore her bicep tendon and supraspinatus which meant, unfortunately, that she had to take some time off training. She attempted to make a return to the pool, but soon after decided that it was time to hang up her goggles.
Alex has coached for the Vancouver Vikings Swim Club for six years. Having worked her way up from the MV2 group, all the way through to the P1 group this Summer. Currently, she is the Head Coach for the Vancouver Vikings and also the UBC Masters Swim Club for adults.
Alex holds two degrees from UBC. A BA in Psychology and Special Education, as well as a BEd in elementary school education and the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program (IB-PYP). This Fall, Alex began her teaching career at York House as a junior school teacher assistant, where she will also be running the junior and senior school swim team.
Alex prides herself on being a technical coach, who is able to create a fun and supportive environment for all her swimmers. She is extremely excited to be coming back as both the head coach and group coach this Fall and cannot wait to get to know each of the swimmers in her group!
Alexandra’s email address is coachalex@vancouvervikings.com.
Kirsten Cheung
Practice Times 1 & 6
Kirsten is excited to be joining the Vikings this winter.
She grew up swimming in the BCSSA Fraser Valley region with the Langley Flippers before becoming a coach and then assistant head coach. Kirsten enjoys helping each swimmer find a passion for swimming while reaching their individual goals. Outside of swimming, she was a national-level sprint canoe and kayak athlete, which means she’s spent most of her life in, on, and around the water. Her favorite stroke is butterfly, specifically the 50m fly. When away from the pool, Kirsten spends her time playing volleyball, hiking, and scuba diving.
She is currently completing her Bachelor's degree in science at UBC studying Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Science.
Kirsten is looking forward to getting to know the Vikings athletes and community over the next few months.
Maia Brundage
Practice Time 2
Originally from Arizona, Maia moved to Vancouver in 2014 to compete as a member of the UBC Women's Swim Team (and to experience rain for the first time) . As an athlete, she has been competing since the age of 5, has won national titles at the University level, and competed in Canadian Olympic Trials in both 2012 and 2016. After graduating in 2019 from UBC with a Bachelor of Commerce, she is now an avid open water swimmer with English Channel aspirations.
At her first swim lesson, Maia launched herself into the pool with no swimming ability but tons of joy. Despite nearly drowning in that first lesson, Maia has always loved the water and finds great joy in sharing that excitement with others as a coach.
Throughout her decade-long coaching career she has worked with children of all ages and ability levels as well as adult learners. Maia prides herself on writing creative and challenging workouts that help swimmers develop technical and endurance skills while still keeping the fun of the sport alive.
She is excited to join the Vikings for the Winter Maintenance season and is looking forward to seeing you on deck!
Aamiya Sidhu
Practice Times 3 & 4
Aamiya is very excited to return to Vikings this winter maintenance season as a Coach. She started with the club in 2013 as a Division 1 swimmer and swam with Vikings until she was in Division 5. She then moved to winter swimming with VPSC in 2018 where she also volunteer coaches the younger members of the club.
She is currently starting Grade 12 at WPGA where she swims and coaches for her high school team. She is looking forward to sharing her love of swimming with her swimmers and supporting them on their journeys to becoming young athletes.
Although she spends the majority of her time at the pool, she also loves playing the violin, watching movies with good snacks and consuming an unhealthy amount of bubble tea.
Brett Caswell
Practice Times 5 & 6
As a long-time member of the Vancouver Vikings since 2011, Brett has always loved his time on the pool deck. When reflecting upon his swimming with the Vikings, Brett is reminded of water gun fights, scores of potlucks, and swim meets that were as exhausting as they were exhilarating.
Throughout the years, Brett has acted as a Vikings Junior Leader (volunteer coach), as an assistant coach, and as a group coach during both the summer and Winter Maintenance seasons.
Outside of the Vikings, Brett has also shown his love for swimming as a coach for the Special Olympics of BC swim team and as the head coach of his high-school swim team. He is completing his certification in Swimming Canada’s National Coaching Certification Program. Brett is currently in his first year at UBC pursuing a degree in the Faculty of Sciences.
Away from the pool deck, Brett enjoys reading, cooking, and jogging.
Mira Jamal
Practice Time 5
Mira is so happy to be coaching for this fall season! She was an assistant coach this summer, and is very excited to be stepping up. She has been swimming with the Vikings since 2012 and has loved every moment of it.
Two years ago, she decided to further her passion for swimming and join the Vancouver Pacific Swim Club. She is looking forward to sharing her love for the club and for the sport with other swimmers!
Mira is currently completing her final year of high school at Sir Winston Churchill Secondary School. In her spare time away from the pool you can find her listening to music, baking, or hiking.
