James Counsilman

James Edward "Doc" Counsilman (December 28, 1920 – January 4, 2004) was a nationally recognized American swimming competitor in the breaststroke who competed for Ohio State, and a swimming coach best known for coaching Indiana University from 1957 to 1990. During his coaching tenure at Indiana, he established an exceptional record of 286-36-1 in meets, and led the Indiana University swimming team to 6 consecutive NCAA Men's Swimming and Diving Championships from 1968 to 1973. Counsilman trained and mentored a total of 48 Olympians.

Early life James Edward Counsilman was born in Birmingham, Alabama on December 28, 1920, the youngest child of Otillia and Joseph Walter Counsilman, both of German descent. His father had worked for a Circus, and his mother managed boarding houses for hospitals. His parents separated when he was two years old, and his father moved him and his older brother to St. Louis when Counsilman was six. His mother later moved to St. Louis and raised him and his older brother there, where James grew up.

Coach Ernie Vronbock He was coached by Ernie Vronbock in his youth at the Downtown YMCA on Locust Street in St. Louis which had a 25-yard, six lane pool. Vronbock, whom Counsilman first met in the 1930s, would coach at the Y about 2-3 times a week, and left written training workouts for resident Coach Ted Ohashi. Vronbock was an important influence on Counsilman's life, and encouraged him to go to college, despite Counsilman's lackluster high school grades and very low class standing. Vronbock would help train Counsilman for meets, and provide auto transportation to a few AAU national meets. Graduating high school in the midst of the depression, Counsilman worked for a few years, as a lineman for the telephone company before starting college at Ohio State.

Ohio State era He swam for Ohio State University beginning in the Fall of 1941 under Hall of Fame Coach Mike Peppe, and while in college set world-records in the 50 and 300 yard breaststrokes. His former coach during his High School years, Ernie Vronboch who knew Coach Peppe, helped Counsilman gain admission to Ohio State. While a student, Counsilman worked part-time as an elevator operator at nights which gave him time to study, and he was provided a small room in a storage area. Counsilman was both a competitive swimmer and for about a year also served as an unpaid Assistant Coach under Peppe, who became an outstanding mentor. During his tenure as Coach, Peppe's Ohio State teams won 11 NCAA Championships and between 1943 and 1963 finished first or second in national competition in all but two years. After completing his military service in 1946, Counsilman returned to IU and served as a team Captain in 1946–47, graduating with a BA in physical education in 1947. In the summer of 1946, Counsilman and the Ohio State team trained with Coach Soichi Sakamoto in greater Honolulu, Hawaii. Sakamoto was a pioneer in interval training, and recognizing the advantages gained in training swimmers with long, demanding yardage.

Air Force service Drafted after completing time at Ohio State, Counsilman reported for duty in March 1943, and served in the United States Army Air Forces. After completing training, he left for Europe in January, 1945, where he served in Italy as a B-24 Liberator pilot with the 455th Bomb Group of the Fifteenth Air Force. Acting as a pilot on bombing raids, he completed 32 missions through May, 1945. At the end of a bombing mission at the age of 24, German flak shot down the B-24 Counsilman was piloting, and damaged the plane's landing gear, requiring Counsilman to crash land in a field in Yugoslavia, near the town of Zagreb. His careful piloting allowed all of his crew to survive, and he received the air medal and the Distinguished Flying Cross for his flying expertice.

Awards in national competitions As shown at right, at the bottom of the infobox under Medal record, in national competition Counsilman took second place in the 1941 indoor championship in the 220 yard breaststroke. He captured first place in the 1942 Outdoor Champion in the 220 yard breaststroke, third place in the 1946 Outdoor Championship in the 200 m breaststroke and first place in the 1942 Outdoor Championships in the 220 yard breaststroke. It was at Iowa that Counsilman coached his first two Olympians-Wally Ris and Bowen Stassforth.

Once at Indiana University, he continued to train George Breen, his former swimmer at Cortland State for the 1500 meter, an event for which Breen would receive a second bronze medal in the 1960 Olympics in Rome. Ultimately, Counsilman was credited with molding Breen into one of the finest Olympic distance swimmers in United States history.

IU Coaching achievements

In dual meets, according to the International Swimming Hall of Fame, Counsilman's teams at Indiana amassed a record 286–36–1, for an exceptional winning percentage of 88.8. A few sources quote an Indiana record of 230–11 in dual meets, establishing a winning percentage of .954. For a seventeen-year period, his Indiana teams went undefeated for 140 successive meets from 1979 through 1996. While at IU, Doc coached over 60 Olympic swimmers, including Mark Spitz.

Counsilman and Joseph Hunnsaker, one of the Counsilman's former swimmers, founded the Counsilman-Hunsaker Company in 1970. The company helped provide information to engineering and architectural personnel on to how build competitive swimming pools, and later also built recreational pools.

Outstanding swimmers Among the best known swimmers who swam for Counsilman were: Jim Montgomery, Gary Hall, John Kinsella, Mike Troy, Charlie Hickcox, Larry Barbiere, Don McKenzie, Chet Jastremski, Wally Ris, Bowen Stassforth, Tom Stock, George Breen, Mike Stamm, Alan Somers, Ted Stickles, John Murphy, Fred Tyler, John Waldman, Gary Conelly, Tom Hickcox, and Mark Spitz. While an Assistant Coach at the University of Iowa, Counsilman coached future Arizona State University Swim Coach Ron Johnson pioneering underwater filming, and observing swimmers' underwater techniques, as can be seen in Royer Pool at Indiana University today. His former instructor and mentoring Head coach David Armbruster at the University of Iowa, was one of the earliest coaches to push for the use of underwater observation windows for competition pools. Counsilman influenced the development of pool design, pace clocks, and pool line markers, all essential in improving training opportunities, and lowering finish times. He was the primary instigator of hypoventilation training, a method consisting of swimming with reduced breathing frequency. The intent was to build lung capacity, adjust swimmers to higher altitude environments, and ultimately to build endurance. A sample training set that used hypoventilation training would have swimmers take a breath every two strokes, then every four strokes, then every six and start over at two strokes.

He served as the first President of the International Swimming Hall of Fame and also held office as the American Swim Coaches Association President.

Counsilman died in a retirement home in Bloomington, Indiana, in 2004, after having suffered from Parkinson's disease for a many years. He was buried in Clear Creek Cemetery, as would be his wife Marjorie in 2017. In an honor from his first coaching position, he was made a member of the SUNY Cortland Athletic Hall of Fame in 2005. United States Aquatic Sports presented Counsilman with the R. Max Ritter Award for both his domestic and international achievements in the sport of swimming.