Howard Firby

Howard Baldwin Firby (September 18, 1924 – March 30, 1991) was a Canadian swim coach and founding coach of the Canadian Dolphins Swim Club. He led the Dolphins to six Canadian National team championships from 1961–1967. At the 1964 Olympics, he was the Canadian Olympic team Coach. Nationally recognized for his coaching achievements in Canada by the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame, he was a founding member of the Canadian Swim Coaches Association, and the Director of the Canadian Amateur Swimming Association. In club coaching, Firby trained and mentored around seven Canadian Olympians to one gold, two silver, and 1 bronze medal. He competed in track and field in his youth. Firby served as a WWII pilot in the Royal Canadian Air Force. He began swimming to rehabilitate his right leg that had been disabled from polio around 1944 when Firby was 20. Treating Firby's polio required hospitalization and eventually ended his service in the Royal Canadian Air Force. After returning home to Regina, Firby began swimming at a local YMCA as therapy for his leg. He heard of the Vancouver Swim Club while attending the Vancouver School of Art. He worked as a lifeguard in Saskatoon, and was a competent swimmer.

Canadian Dolphin Swim team In 1956, Firby founded Vancouver's Canadian Dolphin Swim team beginning with seven members, and found success during his eleven year coaching tenure which ended in 1967. In its early years, the Dolphins met at Vancouver's Crystal Pool at Sunset Beach, but moved to the Vancouver Aquatic Center in 1974.The Dolphins won six national team championships between 1961–1967, with the exception of the year 1965. Their swimmers set 11 world records and over 300 Canadian National records. The Dolphins won over 100 Canadian championships, with their swimmers capturing around ten gold medals in International Games.

Consulting, CASA Director, Swimtec Toronto From 1969-1972, in addition to occasional coaching, he worked on a swimming rules book, and toured the country giving advice to swim clubs on coaching methods and organization. Frequently on the move, in May 1972, Firby left Vancouver for Ottawa to advise the Canadian government on how to attract world class swimmers for the 1976 Montreal Olympics. From 1970-1972, he was a served as Director and National Technical Advisor to the Canadian Amateur Swimming Association. He then spent six months at Fort Lauderdale's International Swimming Hall of Fame in the U.S., primarily as an artist. In November 1973, Firby, worked with a $15,000 Canadian government award granted for one year to Swimtec Ontario to head a group of internationally qualified coaches to train top level Canadian swimmers. The top level training occurred at the coach-owned Swimtec Club in Toronto, Ontario, where Firby coached for a period with Coach Nick Thierry. Thierry and Firby became members of the Canadian Swim Coaches and Teachers Association Hall of Fame in 2014. During this time, Firby was a national coach and coordinator of the Canadian Amateur Swimming Association.

Cohoes Club, Victoria Olympians Beginning in September, 1974, through 1980 he coached the Juan de Fuca Cohoes Club in Victoria which initially operated out of the Centennial Pool in Colwood, just West of downtown Victoria. A heart attack temporarily ended his full time coaching responsibilities around 1982. He would serve as a consulting Master Coach to the Victoria Olympians beginning around 1983 through around 1986. Both teams later became a division of Island Swimming under Coach Ron Jacks. Jacks, a swimmer for James "Doc" Counsilman at Indiana, and a three-time Olympian for Canada, was mentored under Firby for a period and credited him for much of what he learned of stroke technique. Dr. Peter Vizsolyi, who would coach swimming at the nearby University of Victoria, also credited Firby for his contributions to swimming. Vizsolyi had swum with Firby as a youth in Vancouver.

International coaching Firby was an assistant or head coach for Canadian teams competing in swimming at the Olympic Games in 1964, the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in 1954 and 1958 and the Pan American Games in 1955 and 1971.

Later years and death He retired from active coaching around 1985.

In 1985, he became a member of the International Swimming Hall of Fame as an Honor Coach.