Three founders are Olympic medalists and U.S. National swim champs

ROCKWALL, TX: “From first stroke to full speed.” That’s the motto of the Ian Crocker Swim School, opening its first North Texas branch Monday, September 14, at the new Rockwall Aquatic Center (1205 T.L. Townsend Drive, Rockwall TX 75087, 214-714-6564).

Ian Crocker, 27, a graduate of UT-Austin, is a three-time Olympic swimming champion with five medals in Olympic competition, and is the former World Record Holder in the butterfly. After swimming for the U.S. in the 2000, 2004 and 2008 Olympic Games, Crocker retired from competition and founded his first swim school in Austin with two Longhorn teammates: fellow Olympian Neil Walker and former U.S. National Champion James Fike.

“We are excited about bringing a new level of swimming to Rockwall,” says Crocker. “In this brand new, year-round indoor facility, we can offer top-level training to swimmers of every age and ability. We are eager to make Rockwall the best place in North Texas for kids to learn to swim, and to improve the form, power and efficiency of those who already love swimming.”

The Ian Crocker Swim School in Rockwall offers experienced, passionate and patient instructors who are dedicated to the highest quality swim instruction. The school is committed first and foremost to water safety through its learn-to-swim program. Beyond water safety, the school teaches the proper form technique to use for swimming at any level. Group, semi-private and private classes for children as young as 6 months are available, plus pre-competitive and competitive lessons for youth and adults.

The just-opened Rockwall Aquatic Center features a 50-meter competition pool, a warm-water instructional pool, a diving area, a 950-seat viewing stand, dressing facilities, a pro shop and a weight room. The Ian Crocker Swim School shares the facility with the Rockwall ISD, which has added swim instruction to its school fitness curriculum.

The Ian Crocker Swim School serves the community through:

Top-Quality Swim Instruction – Providing the highest quality instruction to children and adults of any age and ability. All staff instructors are trained to teach infants and toddlers. Pre-competitive and competitive instructors share years of experience and a passion for coaching.
Direct Community Involvement – The Ian Crocker Swim Schools partner with organizations such as Lift Up America, a nonprofit humanitarian aid movement, and Colin’s Hope, a nonprofit that works to reduce accidental drowning among children. Through the charities, the school will offer free swim and water safety instruction to children in the Dallas area whose families cannot afford lessons.
Community Charity Support – The Ian Crocker Swim Schools dedicate 5 percent of their profits to organizations that help children and families affected by sickness and poverty. These include the Make-A-Wish Foundation and Ronald McDonald House, as well as Rachel’s Challenge.

More about the founders:

Ian Crocker, born in Portland, Maine, received five Olympic medals in his competitive swimming career. He was the first man ever to swim under 51 seconds in the 100-meter butterfly. He bested his own world record at the 2005 World Swimming Championships in Montreal. He is a 22-time NCAA All-American, four-time World Champion and has more than 20 years experience as a competitive swimmer. He makes his home in Austin, where he founded the first Ian Crocker Swim School in 2008.

Neil Walker is an Olympic gold, silver and bronze medalist who participated in the 2000 and 2004 Summer Games. He was a 25-time NCAA All-American and NCCA Champion, swimming for The University of Texas. After conducting more than 50 swim clinics all over the world, he recently was hired as head coach for the Rockwall ISD swim club program. Walker was assistant coach of the Longhorn Aquatics club team in Austin. For Rockwall ISD, his responsibilities will include club coaching, swim instruction for all levels and water safety classes for each RISD second-grader in the 2009-2010 school years. Walker and his wife, April, an emergency room nurse, live in Dallas.

James Fike swam for The University of Texas from 2000 to 2003, was a member of three NCAA Championship teams and has more than 20 years of swimming experience. He is also a U.S. National Champion and participated in the 2000 U.S. Swimming Olympic Trials. In the summer of 2009 he coached the Circle C Seals, ages 4 to 17, to the Austin summer league title. Fike currently lives in South Austin with his wife, Rebecca, and 2-year-old son, Landon.

www.iancrockerswimschool.com