Iowa announced a new staff member this afternoon - tabbing former DII All-American James Malechek (UW-Parkside) as its ‘Assistant Athletic Performance Coach.’
Per Iowa’s press release, Malechek arrives ”after serving as a strength and conditioning specialist at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida.”
Prior to that,
“Malechek spent seven years with the Chinese national and provincial swimming programs. He served as head performance coach for the Guangdong Swimming Association in 2025 after spending six years (2018-24) as head performance coach and dryland trainer for the China National Swimming Team.
During his tenure with China's national program, athletes won three Olympic gold medals, three Olympic silver medals and five Olympic bronze medals. They also won seven world championship titles and set three world records.
Malechek worked directly with several of the world's top swimmers, including Olympic champion and multiple-time world medalist Zhang Yufei and world-record holder Qin Haiyang, who became the first swimmer to sweep the 50-, 100- and 200-meter breaststroke events at a single World Championships.”
Per Iowa’s press release, Malechek arrives ”after serving as a strength and conditioning specialist at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida.”
Prior to that,
“Malechek spent seven years with the Chinese national and provincial swimming programs. He served as head performance coach for the Guangdong Swimming Association in 2025 after spending six years (2018-24) as head performance coach and dryland trainer for the China National Swimming Team.
During his tenure with China's national program, athletes won three Olympic gold medals, three Olympic silver medals and five Olympic bronze medals. They also won seven world championship titles and set three world records.
Malechek worked directly with several of the world's top swimmers, including Olympic champion and multiple-time world medalist Zhang Yufei and world-record holder Qin Haiyang, who became the first swimmer to sweep the 50-, 100- and 200-meter breaststroke events at a single World Championships.”
