Mark Gangloff - Swimming & Diving Coach - University of North Carolina Athletics

Photo by: Jerome M. Ibrahim

Mark Gangloff

Title:
Head Coach
Email:
mgangloff@unc.edu
Phone:
919-962-6000

Mark Gangloff, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, three-time World Champion and one of the most dynamic leaders in the world of collegiate swimming, was named the head coach for the men's and women's swimming and diving programs at the University of North Carolina in May 2019. Before coming to Chapel Hill, Gangloff spent seven years at the University of Missouri, where he served as the Tigers' associate head coach for his final two seasons.

For the fourth consecutive season in 2023-24, Gangloff guided the women's team to a Top-20 finish at the NCAA Championships, finishing in 17th place. The group won two individual national championships, while earning 12 College Swimming & Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) All-America honors and nine honorable mention All-America nods. The women's team finished fourth at the ACC Championships for the fourth consecutive year. Aranza Vázquez Montaño, a finalist for the Honda Award for Swimming & Diving, was named ACC Women's Diver of the Year for the second consecutive year after repeating as the 1-meter and 3-meter champion at both ACCs and NCAAs. She went on to be named CSCAA Women's Diver of the Year. During the summer in '24, a total of four Tar Heels participated in the 2024 Paris Olympics with Vázquez Montaño reaching the semifinals in the 3-meter for Mexico. A group of eight swimmers competed at the U.S. Olympic Trials as well. Behind strong efforts in the classroom, UNC had 17 swimmers named to the CSCAA Scholar All-America team and five to the College Sports Communications (CSC) Academic All-District team. UNC placed 51 swimmers and divers on the ACC Academic Honor Roll and 34 on the All-ACC Academic team.

During the 2022-23 season, Gangloff led the UNC women’s team to its first Top-10 finish at the NCAA Championships in more than 20 years as the Tar Heels placed 10th at the 2023 national meet with Vázquez Montaño capturing two individual national titles. The men’s team recorded its best NCAA finish since 2015 by placing 23rd, just 10 points outside the Top 20. A total of nine members of the Carolina men's and women's swimming and diving teams were recognized as All-Americans by the College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) following NCAAs. Vázquez Montaño, Anton Down-Jenkins and Grace Countie earned first-team individual All-America accolades, while Countie, Greer Pattison, Skyler Smith and Ellie VanNote picked up first-team honors in the women's 200 medley relay. Overall, the Tar Heels set nine school records under Gangloff’s tutelage, including four relay records.

The 2021-22 season saw the Carolina women finish 14th at the NCAA Championships, while the men claimed 27th. At the ACC Championships, the women placed fourth, while the men took seventh. Down-Jenkins claimed ACC Diver of the Year honors after winning the ACC title in the 1-meter and taking silver in the 3-meter. He was also named ACC Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

Gangloff’s mark on the program started to show during his second season in Chapel Hill when the women finished 12th at the 2021 NCAA Championship, while the men placed 24th. The men’s squad also finished sixth at the 2021 ACC Championships, the program’s best showing in five years. At the 2021 NCAA Championships, the Tar Heels had a total of seven first-team and five honorable mention All-America individual performances, while two relay teams earned first-team honors and two others were tabbed honorable mention. Diving standouts Down-Jenkins and Vázquez Montaño each earned Most Valuable Diver honors at the ACC Championships. Down-Jenkins won the gold medal in both the 1- and 3-meter events, while Vazquez took first in the 3-meter and platform events and a silver in the 1-meter. Down-Jenkins (New Zealand) and Vázquez Montaño (Mexico) later competed at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in the summer of 2021.

During Gangloff’s first season in 2019-20, Carolina’s swimmers and divers showed tremendous growth at both the conference and national levels. The women’s and men’s programs rose three spots at the ACC Championship meets, finishing four and seventh, respectively, while a total of 13 individuals qualified for the NCAA Championship meet - nine women and four men. Carolina would set a combined nine team records over the course of Gangloff’s inaugural season. In addition, UNC boasted 49 members on the ACC Academic Honor Roll, 14 athletes earned All-America honors, and 12 were selected to the All-ACC Academic Team. The program had a Top-10 Scholar Athlete and a Top-6 Service Athlete, an award handed out by the ACC.

In his seven years at Missouri, Gangloff led the Tigers to five top-15 finishes at both the men's and women's NCAA Championships. The Tigers men posted back-to-back top-10 NCAA results in 2016 and 2017, with the 2016 team finishing a program-best eighth nationally and Fabian Schwingenschlogl winning the first NCAA title in school history in the 100 breaststroke. That same year the Tiger women also had an all-time best team finish, placing 11th overall.

Before his time at Missouri, Gangloff spent three years as a volunteer assistant coach at Auburn, his alma mater. During his time on the Auburn coaching staff, he assisted with stroke technique, race strategy and strength and conditioning.

From 2007-09, Gangloff coached at Swim MAC Carolina in Charlotte, N.C., where he assisted in the development and implementation of program and training design. He also provided instruction on race strategy and post-race coaching for swimmers ages 10-18.

On the international stage, Gangloff made his first Olympic team in 2004, when he won a gold medal as part of the 400 medley relay in Athens. Four years later he qualified for the 2008 Olympic Games and was part of the 400 medley relay that won gold in Beijing.

At the World Championships, Gangloff was a three-time gold medalist in the 400 medley relay. He also won silver in the 50 breaststroke in 2005 and bronze in the same event in 2009. He was a team captain on both the 2009 and 2011 world teams as well as the 2010 Pan Pacific Championships and USA National Championships teams, the 2008 Short Court World Championships team and the 2010 Duel in the Pool, where he helped set a world record in the 400 medley relay.

Additionally, Gangloff participated in the Pan-American Games in 1999, 2003 and '07, earning gold medals in the 400 medley relay in 2003 and '07, gold in the 100 breast in 2003 and bronze in the 200 breast in 1999.

As a collegiate swimmer at Auburn, Gangloff helped the Tigers to NCAA team titles in 2003 and '04 and four straight SEC team titles. Individually, Gangloff earned 12 total All-America honors and won SEC titles in the 100 and 200 breast and the 200 and 400 medley relays.

A native of Akron, Ohio, Gangloff earned a degree in criminology from Auburn in 2005. He and his wife Ashley, a former national champion diver at Auburn, have three daughters, Annabelle, Hattie Rose and Kathryn.