Piedmont Swim Team : Coaches & Directors

Helen Garcia - Head Coach email Helen Garcia enters her fifth year as head coach of the Piedmont Swim Team after a fantastic season of swimming with swimmers reaching the nationally ranked level. Helen has coached our pre-senior and senior teams and has sent numerous swimmers to compete at the collegiate level including Amherst University and Boston College. Helen came to our team first in 2000 as our assistant coach. In 2003 she took over as head coach of the program. From 1998-2002, Helen was an assistant and eventually head coach of the University of California, Berkeley masters swimming program, (Strawberry Canyon Aquatic Masters, SCAM) where she organized and lead over 200 swimmers in competition and fitness. Helen also coached the Piedmont High School Swim team from 2000-2005 and led them to a league championship title each year as head coach. Helen’s background in swimming stems from many years growing up as an age group swimmer in Southern California. Her stroke specialty includes the breaststroke events as well as the individual medley. Some of her accomplishments as a swimmer include winning the 200 breaststroke at Junior Nationals in 1988 and holding the Junior National record in the event for two years. She also held the Los Angeles City High School record in the 100 breaststroke as a high school swimmer in 1990. Helen has competed in the top meets in the nation including US Nationals and Olympic Trials in 1992. Helen came to the Bay Area in 1993 to attend the University of California, Berkeley on a swimming scholarship. Swimming under Olympic Coach Terri McKeever, Helen excelled under her tutelage leading the team in her senior season as team captain. Helen continues to swim competitively holding numerous Pacific Swimming records and National records in the masters division. In the summer of 2006 Helen competed at the World Championships and finished second in the 100 breaststroke and 50 breaststroke. Helen graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in 1998 as an undergraduate majoring in Film & Rhetoric Studies with a minor in Chicano Studies. In 2007 Helen completed her Master of Arts in Education at the University of California, Berkeley.

Jesus Salcedo - Assistant Coach email Jesus Salcedo joined our team in 2005 and is now entering his third year coaching for the Piedmont swim team. Jesus is a level 2 ASCA coach and has nine years of experience in the sport. Jesus works with and develops our younger swimmers in the stingray and junior groups. Jesus grew up with a family of swimmers, first beginning his swimming career at the tender age of four. His stroke specialty was the Butterfly as well as swimming the Individual Medley. As a high school swimmer Jesus held the Los Angeles City school records in the 50 and 100 Fly. Jesus also competed in the sport of water polo and helped his team to a C.I.F. championship title at Bell Gardens High School in Southern California. As a college swimmer Jesus earned All-American honors in both the 200 fly and the 200 Individual Medley at El Camino College. In 1998, Jesus came to the bay area and began teaching lessons at the Haufler Aquatic Swim School. After establishing himself as a teacher he further explored the world of swimming as a swim coach. In the fall of 1999, Jesus began coaching for the Orinda Country Club (OCC). There he became the head age group coach where he helped organize 300 swimmers to compete in the Orinda Moraga Pool Association Championships (OMPA). Since Jesus's involvement with OCC their team has earned 7 league champion titles at OMPA. In 2004, Jesus coached the Head Royce High School Team and coached them to a second place finish in the Bay County High School League. Jesus also spent some time coaching Masters swimming at Strawberry Canyon Masters and Orinda Aquatics Masters teams. Currently Jesus is assisting with the Piedmont High School water polo teams and has become the head coach of the Piedmont High School Swim team.

» Rick Aranson - Assistant Coach email