Developing Coaches, Building Dynamo, and the Evolution of ASCA with Ian Murray

Live from the 2026 ASCA World Clinic, the Business of Swimming sat down with Ian Murray, Head Coach of Dynamo Swim Club, to talk about managing one of the country’s most established swim organizations, developing the next generation of coaches, and the changes he has seen within the American Swimming Coaches Association.

The conversation also came full circle from the previous year’s World Clinic, when Dynamo first connected with Captyn. Since then, the organization has moved its diverse programming onto one platform—a transition Ian says has helped Dynamo do business better.

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Bringing a Complex Swim Organization Under One Roof

Dynamo isn’t simply a competitive swim team.

Its programming stretches across Learn to Swim, the Dynamo Junior Swim League, a competitive team of approximately 750 athletes, Masters swimming, recreation, and its own facilities. At any given time, Ian says Dynamo may also serve between 150 and 200 Masters swimmers.

Managing an organization of that scale creates a unique operational challenge.

Before transitioning to Captyn, Dynamo was using three different software platforms across its programs—something Ian described as an “administrative nightmare.”

Moving to Captyn gave Dynamo an opportunity to bring those different parts of the organization under one umbrella.

Ian says the transition has generated positive feedback from both members and staff, while giving the organization responsive support when questions or challenges arise.

“We’re just doing business better,” he said.

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Building the Right Onboarding Process

Consolidating multiple programs onto a single platform doesn’t happen overnight, particularly for an organization as large and multifaceted as Dynamo.

Ian described an onboarding process built around communication and iteration. Dynamo’s staff participated in multiple meetings while its platform was being built, had opportunities to work within a beta environment, and could raise questions before fully transitioning.

That support continued after launch.

Captyn team members visited Dynamo in person to sit down with staff, identify pain points, and determine what could be improved.

For Ian, that ongoing relationship has been an important part of making the transition successful.

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A Changing ASCA

Ian also brings another perspective to the World Clinic as a member of the ASCA Board, where he serves as secretary.

His relationship with the organization hasn’t always been as close as it is today.

Ian explained that there was a period when he moved away from ASCA because he didn’t feel particularly connected to the organization or its impact on him as a coach. Eventually, colleagues encouraged him to get involved as they saw the organization moving in a new direction.

He listened.

Now in his fourth year and second term on the board, Ian points to an increased focus on community, advocacy for coaches, and new approaches to education as important parts of ASCA’s evolution.

That change is also visible at the World Clinic.

Ian sees a more professional event and, importantly, more young coaches becoming involved. Programs such as the ASCA Fellows and ASCA 30 Under 30 are helping create opportunities for another generation to become part of the coaching community.

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“My Second Group Is the Coaches”

The conversation eventually turned from developing swimmers to developing the people responsible for coaching them.

For Ian, the two responsibilities aren’t all that different.

“There’s no stronger resource than your coaching staff,” he said.

At Dynamo, coaches work across two levels of the organization, spending time in both the age-group and senior divisions. That structure gives coaches experience across different stages of athlete development.

Ian takes his own responsibility a step further.

He coaches a senior group, but as he puts it, his “second group is the coaches.”

Just as he wants to see an athlete progress through Dynamo, swim collegiately, or potentially reach even higher levels of the sport, he wants to create advancement opportunities for his staff.

Sometimes that means taking on a new role within Dynamo. Other times, success means watching a coach leave the organization for a head coaching position or an opportunity in collegiate swimming.

Ian takes pride in both outcomes.

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Building a Coaching Tree

Developing coaches also creates something larger than one organization’s staff.

It creates a coaching tree.

When coaches move into new positions throughout the sport, the relationships they’ve developed don’t disappear. They create a network of professionals who can continue exchanging ideas, challenging one another, and providing feedback throughout their careers.

For a program like Dynamo, that means its influence can extend well beyond the athletes currently training in its pools.

A successful swim organization doesn’t only develop swimmers. It can develop the people who will go on to lead programs and influence athletes across the sport.

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Coaching Is About People

The conversation finished with a round of rapid-fire “hot seat” questions, including one that revealed a little more about Ian’s coaching philosophy.

Asked whether he always tells swimmers the truth about their times in practice, Ian’s answer was simple: no.

His explanation was more important.

“Coaching’s about people, it’s about relationships and you gotta read the room sometimes.”

There are days when a stopwatch isn’t the most useful tool a coach has. Ian described times when he’ll put the watch away and redirect the athlete toward something they can work on instead—focusing on strategy rather than a metric.

That philosophy connects back to much of the conversation.

Whether it’s developing athletes, mentoring coaches, improving an organization, or contributing to the broader coaching community, swimming ultimately comes back to people—and creating an environment where those people have an opportunity to grow.

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