In order to build a championship caliber men’s and women’s swimming program at the University of New Orleans, head swimming coach Randy Horner needed someone with a background of success. Horner did just that when he announced the hiring of James Winchester as his assistant coach on Dec. 3, 2007.
Upon Horner's departure for the head coaching job at Florida International, Winchester was named the program's interim swimming and diving coach on May 25, 2010 before being elevated to head coach on July 7, 2010.
In his short time on the Lakefront, Winchester has paid dividends for the UNO swimming and diving program, playing a major role in the Privateer men’s swimming and diving team landing the 18th ranked recruiting class in the nation by CollegeSwimming.com in spring 2008. The women’s team also was lauded with Colleen McReynolds being tabbed with the potential to be an NCAA qualifier.
The recruits during his two signing classes paid immediate dividends for the program.
In the first year, the men's program in their first year back on the Lakefront, set 22 school-records, on way to making 12 appearances in the finals at the Sun Belt Conference meet. Amongst the 12 appearances were four podium finishes, in addition to a podium placement by the 400 medley relay unit.
On the women's side, 15 school records were acheived with 11 individual swimmers placing amongst the top eight in their event at the conference meet. The 11 topped the total of nine accumulated over the previous three years, with the Privateer women placing on the podium three times over the course of the meet - a school first.
The success continued after the 2008-09 season for athletes recruited by Winchester, as four combined to total nine national championships.
In his second full year, the Privateers continued to set the bar high. Mark Schindler won both the 100 and 200 breasts on way to being named co-Sun Belt Swimmer of the Year. The two event wins by Schindler were the first for a UNO swimmer in school history. More school records fell throughout the course of the year and the Privateer women defeated crosstown rival Tulane for the first time in school history.
Out of the pool, UNO was just as successful. In spring 2010, the men earned their third Scholar-Athlete All-American designation in four semesters while the women garnered their second straight Scholar-Athlete All-American nod from the College Swim Coaches Association of America.
Winchester came to the Lakefront from Drury University, where he has served as a graduate assistant coach for the last year and a half. Drury, located in Springfield, Mo, won the 2007 NCAA Division II national championship in both men’s and women’s swimming.
At Drury, Winchester was specifically responsible for coaching sprints, breaststroke, IM and distance groups. He also assisted in scheduling of practices and managing the recruitment database for the program.
His other swim coaching experience includes a stint as the head swim coach for Scottsburg HS in Indiana, where from September 2004 to March 2005, he coached the boys and girls’ swim teams. During his tenure at Scottsburg, his team set 19 school records and achieved the highest placing in the Indiana regional in school history for both the boys and girls teams.
Winchester is familiar with Division I swimming, having been a member of the University of Louisville men’s swimming and diving team from 2000 to 2004. At UL, his specialty was the breaststroke and short-distance free events. He was an Academic All-American.
Prior to lettering with UL, Winchester competed as a youth swimmer in the Florida Gold Coast Championship, Florida Junior Olympics and Southeast Junior Nationals. He was a two-time England national age group champion and national record holder in the relays. Throughout his youth career, he was a six-time national age group finalist and in 2000, he was an Olympic Trials qualifier.
