Byron MacDonald, the head coach of the U of T men’s and women’s swim teams, has had an extremely successful career, both as a swimmer and as a coach. But as a young man growing up in the United States, this future was not what he had in mind.
“I had a disease… called Perthes, and it’s where the bones don’t grow properly… usually it’s your leg and hip,” said MacDonald.
After being in a cast for over a year at the beginning of elementary school, a doctor recommended that MacDonald try swimming to strengthen his muscles. MacDonald discovered not only that he enjoyed the sport, but that he was pretty good at it as well.
Soon after starting the sport, MacDonald began competing with a competitive club. By age 12, he was part of a nationally ranked team. He later attended a high school with the top swimming program in the US, which pushed him to continue to improve. MacDonald was team captain for all four years of high school, and was named an All-American in his fourth year.
“There was only one guy faster than me in the entire United States when I graduated, and he… won 7 medals at the Olympics.”
“I knew at that point that swimming was really important, and it was something I was really going to focus on.”
Following graduation, MacDonald was uncertain about his chances at making the American national team, choosing instead to join the Canadian team. At the same time, he studied at the University of Michigan, where he earned a commerce degree and was named an All-American in the last two years of his program.
MacDonald was successful in international competition as well.
“At the commonwealth games… I won two gold medals; the Pan Am games, a silver and a bronze medal; and then in the Olympics I was sixth place.”
MacDonald decided to continue swimming after graduation, and was forced to return to school in order to get funding. He attended U of T for one semester, and then returned to the University of Michigan for a Master’s degree in recreation. He won a silver medal at the World Student Games and the Commonwealth Games, but missed attaining a position with the Canadian Olympic team.
“The day after the [Canadian team tryout] was over, the coach from U of T actually came up to me, and said: ‘Here’s an application for York University swimming coach, I think you’d be great’.”
MacDonald took the job and was an immediate success, winning a national coaching award and pushing his team to third place nationally. However, MacDonald knew that there was limited recruiting power at York, especially with nearby U of T boasting an Olympic–size pool and a strong academic reputation.
“The guy [at U of T] realized, [York] did so well that we were actually going to beat U of T the next year, and so… he stepped down and said take my job here, and so I came down here and took the job at U of T.”
Since coming to U of T, MacDonald’s career has been extremely successful. His teams have won a total of 43 conference championships, and 16 national championships. He has coached over 200 students to all-Canadian awards, and has won Ontario University Athletics (OUA) Coach of the Year 19 times, Canadian Intercollegiate Sports (CIS) Coach of the Year 12 times. He has also coached a swimmer to an Olympic bronze medal.
U of T’s current men’s team is the defending national champion, something that MacDonald wants to repeat in a month’s time.
“This year, we told everybody our goal was to do your best time, and win the national title. And on the women’s side, it was to do your best time, and win the conference title.”
A talented team and promising new recruits, as well as more resources being diverted to the U of T swim team, mean that the program is likely to be successful for many years to come. MacDonald has no plans to leave the team anytime soon, saying he’ll coach until at least 2020.
“I love my job… I look forward to Mondays because I know I get to come back and start coaching again.”