Yale men’s swimming and diving head coach Tim Wise resigned on Tuesday after 19 years with the program.
A press release by the Yale Athletic Department Tuesday evening announcing Wise’s resignation did not offer a reason for his departure. Wise has been a member of the team’s coaching staff since 1998 and recently finished his seventh season as head coach, in which the Elis finished 10–2 in dual meets but came in a disappointing fourth at the Ivy League championships. Wise did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday evening.
“I’d like to thank Tim for his many contributions to the Yale community and to the program he has led for the last seven years,” Director of Athletics Tom Beckett said in the press release. “We are most grateful for all of his efforts to bring exceptional student-athletes to the Yale community to be part of the Yale swimming and diving program.”
Wise had previously taken time off from the swimming program: In August 2015, the University placed Wise on administrative leave until October of that year. Athletic Department administrators were not able to provide information regarding the causes of Wise’s leave at that time.
During that period, Kevin Norman served as the interim head before returning to his previous role of assistant coach. The Athletic Department has yet to reveal a course of action for finding Wise’s replacement.
In the meantime, Wise’s resignation leaves a team of 32 swimmers and divers without a leader in the short term.
“[Tim] has been involved with Yale swimming for nearly two decades, and his commitment and passion for our program will be greatly missed,” captain Alex Goss ’17 said. “It was a pleasure to be mentored by him as a swimmer and work with him as captain, and myself and the rest of the team wish him the best.”
Wise previously served as the head coach at nearby Southern Connecticut State University, his alma mater, for the 1995 and 1996 seasons. For 12 years, Wise was an assistant to legendary Yale head coach Frank Keefe, who retired in 2010.
In his first season at the helm in 2010–11, the Bulldogs only managed a 2–8 dual meet record and a fourth-place finish in the Ivy League. Subsequently, the dual meet performance improved, as Yale went 48–14 between the 2011–12 and 2016–17 seasons. However, the Elis never broke into the upper echelon of Ivy League swim programs, finishing fourth in the conference in six of Wise’s seven years.
“The members of the team appreciate [Wise’s] many years on the coaching staff and we are grateful for his lasting contributions,” team member Henry Gaissert ’20 said. “That being said, I am confident in a bright future for our program. We had an outstanding regular-season record, and several of our fastest team records were broken at Ivy championships.”
Wise was the eighth person to coach the men’s swimming and diving team, which first began competing in 1899.