MIAMI (June 30, 2017) – FIU's swimming and diving Head Coach
Randy Horner announced today the promotion of
Ignacio Gayo to associate head coach.
"Ignacio has helped me build this program from day one," Horner said. "He is much more than an assistant coach and this promotion depicts that. The stability and quality of our staff is a big part of our success."
Gayo wrapped up his seventh season with the Panthers, helped guide FIU to its third-straight conference title this past season, posting the fourth-highest point total in C-USA Championship history. The Panthers claimed 14 of the 21 total titles during the four-day championships en route to a 922.5-point result.
This past year, the native of Madrid, Spain, was in charge of the FIU sprint program, which was an integral part of the team's success in this year's C-USA Championships, and guided the Panthers to a record number of participants in the NCAA Championships. FIU saw its first relay teams qualify for the NCAA Championships during the 2016-17 season.
Under Gayo,
Letizia Bertelli was named the C-USA Swimmer of the Year, making her the third swimmer to claim the league's top honor under his tutelage. He also helped
Naomi Ruele (2015-16 C-USA Swimmer of the Year) and Johanna Gustafsdottir (2014-15 C-USA Swimmer of the Year; 2011-12 Sun Belt Swimmer of the Year).
During his time at FIU, the program has won three-straight conference titles, claiming 54 gold medals in championships competition.
Gayo graduated from Missouri State in 2009 with a Bachelor's of Science in computer information systems and information technology service management. He is currently finishing a Master's of Science in administrative studies with an emphasis in sports management.
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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in eight different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and Riccardo Silva Stadium.
About FIU:
Florida International University is classified by Carnegie as a "R1: Doctoral Universities - Highest Research Activity" and recognized as a Carnegie Community Engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offers bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as business, engineering, computer science, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes almost $9 billion each year to the local economy and is ranked second in Florida in Forbes Magazine's "America's Best Employers" list. FIU graduates are consistently among the highest paid college graduates in Florida and are among the leaders of public and private organizations throughout South Florida. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission with multiple state-of-the-art research facilities including the Wall of Wind Research and Testing Facility, FIU's Medina Aquarius Program and the Advanced Materials Engineering Research Institute. FIU has awarded more than 220,000 degrees and enrolls more than 54,000 students in two campuses and centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, the Miami Beach Urban Studios, and Tianjin, China. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and more than 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.
