 Noemi Zaharia |
ormer
All-American and Olympic medal-winner Noemi
Zaharia has been named as the architect of the Florida
International University women's swimming program. The Miami-based
university will field its first-ever women's swimming team for
competition in the 2003-04 winter season.
"We are very fortunate to have attracted someone of Noemi's caliber to FIU," said athletic director Rick Mello. "She has competed at the highest level, has coached on the collegiate level and has significant ties among the South Florida swimming community.
"Noemi is a driven and results-oriented person, but above all, she is a person of integrity who clearly understands the mission of a university and is dedicated to nurturing and developing the student-athlete. She is a welcomed addition to the FIU family and I have every confidence that we will have a very competitive swimming program under her leadership."
Zaharia competed in both the 1988 and '92 Olympic games, taking the silver medal in the 400 individual medley and bronze in the 200 IM in 1988. Before that, she swam in the 1987 World Championship Games where she won five gold and two bronze medals and received the Most Valuable Athlete award.
Zaharia attended Florida Atlantic University where she earned All-America honors in 1991 and '92. She took eight Division II individual championships while swimming for the Owls and still holds NCAA Championships records in the women's 200 IM (2:03.25) and 400 IM (4:20.68). Zaharia was named the NCAA's 1992 Female Athlete of the Year and received the Honda Award for excellence in sports.
She started her coaching career as a student assistant at her alma mater, and from 1997-2000, was associate head coach for both men and women at FAU. While there, Zaharia managed the recruiting program that helped produce five national qualifiers, three competitors in the 2000 South American Games and a participant in the World University Games and European Championships.
Since then, Zaharia has been assistant coach and coach of the developmental swim team of KJ SwimAmerica, and technical programs director for the American Swimming Coaches Association in Ft. Lauderdale and is head coach of the Shores Village Aquatics program in Miami Shores.
As a community leader, Zaharia organized and conducts volunteer pre-school and stroke-victim swimming programs and is a motivational speaker to students and athletes in her native Romania as well as in the U.S.
She is married to her husband Cristian Zaharia who was an Olympian himself in team handball and is the current U.S. National team head coach in that sport.
NOEMI LUNG ZAHARIA ATHLETIC ACHIEVEMENTS: 1988 OLYMPIC GAMES - Silver- 400 IM, Bronze - 200 IM, 10th- 400 free 1992 OLYMPIC GAMES - 11th place - 400 IM WORLD RECORD HOLDER - 400 IM, (held for 6 years), equaled the 400 free EUROPEAN RECORD HOLDER (broken after almost 15 years) - 400IM RANKED #1 IN THE WORLD in 200 IM in 1986, 1987 RANKED #1 IN THE WORLD in 400 IM in 1986, 1987, and 1988 RANKED 16TH IN THE WORLD - ALL TIME BEST IN 400 IM (as of March 2002) 1986 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP - Bronze - 400 IM, 1987 WORLD UNIVERSITY GAMES - 5 Gold, 2 Bronze, Voted - MVP of the Games 1986 GOODWILL GAMES - 2 Gold - in 200 IM and 400 IM, bronze-400 Free 1987 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS - Gold - 400 IM, Silver - 4x200 Freestyle Relay, Bronze- 200IM - Fourth- 400 free, 5th- 800free WORLD RECORD HOLDER - 400 IM, (held for 6 years), equaled the 400 free EUROPEAN RECORD HOLDER (broken after almost 15 years) - 400IM 1991-1993 NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS - 8 Time National Champion, Record Holder in 200 and 400 IM Female Athlete of the Year- NCAA Div. II Female Athlete of the Year - Florida Atlantic University NATIONAL TITLES - More than 350 Romanian National Champion titles and records -- Since age 11 - member of the Romanian National Team PROFESSIONAL ACHIEVEMENTS:
- 2002- present - Head Coach at Florida International University (FIU)
- 2001 -present - Head Coach at Miami Shores Village Swimming Team
- Founder and vice president of New Sports Enterprises Inc. (NSE)
- Voted in the International Swimming Hall of Fame (ISHOF) Congress
- Member of the World Olympians Association
- 2000-2001 - Technical Programs Director at American Swimming Coaches Association
- 1997-2000 - Associate Head Men's
and Women's Swim Coach at Florida University (FAU)
-- Two swimmers qualified for NCAA Div. I Championships
-- One swimmer qualified for the World University Games and European Championship
-- Three swimmers qualified for the South American Games - 1997-2000 - NIKE Swim Camps
- Conducted swim camps for children of all ages and
ability levels - 1998-2000 - Organized and conducted
a volunteer program to teach pre-school age
children to swim - 1993-1995 - Assistant Swim Coach
for both Men's and Women's teams at FAU
-- Four swimmers participated at the 1996 Olympic Games
-- One Men's NCAA DIV. I CHAMPION in 200 freestyle - Level 4 ASCA (American Swim Coaches Assoc.) Certification
- Level 5 ASCTA (Australian Swim Coaches and Teachers Assoc.) Certification
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