Coaches
Donald P. Spellman - Head Coach
Coach Don has been coaching with the Iowa City Eels (formerly the Iowa City Swim Club) since 1995. From the fall of 1995 to the winter of 1998 he worked with the age-group program and helped develop the team under the head coaching of Ken Doss and later under Marc Long. Don has coached at the Zone, Sectional, and National level and has developed over 21 swimmers who went on to swim at the NCAA Divison I, II, and III levels and one swimmer who competed for a NAIA institution. Two of his former swimmers have gone on to qualify for the USA Swimming - Olympic Team Trials (2000, 2008). Coach Spellman was voted the ISI Age-Group Coach of the Year for 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2005. In 2005, 2007, and 2010 he was awarded ISI Senior Coach of the Year honors. Don is the only coach in ISI history to win both awards for the same year (2005).
Don is an ASCA member and President of the Iowa Swimming Coaches Association (2007 to present). He is a member of the Iowa Swimming Inc. Board of Directors (serving as Technical Planning Director for the LSC from 2007 to 2009 and Senior Coach Representative from 2009 to the present) and is also the Diveristy / Outreach Chairman for the LSC. Donald was a delegate for ISI at the United States Aquatic Sports Convention in 2000 and in 2009. He has served on Iowa All-Star / Iowa Zone Team staff nine times (4 x as Head Coach or Co-Head Coach).
Mr. Spellman was a former athlete with UNLV (Univeristy of Nevada - Las Vegas), Perry (IA.) High School, West Des Moines Dowling (IA.) High School, Des Moines Swim Federation, Hawkeye Swim Club, and ICE / ICSC. In 1993 while a member of DMSF he was awarded the Judy Hoffman Memorial Scholarship from Iowa Swimming Inc. Coach Don is currently a USMS swimmer and full time coach as well as a husband (married to Emily A. Spellman) and father of twin daughters (current ICE members Anna and Grace Spellman). Donald's famous relatives include Ezra Pound (experimental modernist poet) and Roscoe Pound (American legal scholar / former Dean of Harvard Law School). Away from the pool Don enjoys mountain biking (singletrack and downhill), skiing (downhill), skateboarding, reducing his carbon footprint, reading poetry, collecting vintage Star Wars products, and listening to punk and modern rock.
ICE Under Coach Spellman:
2004 & 2006 ISI Long Course- TEAM OVERALL CHAMPIONS
2006 & 2007 (Long Course) ISI - Senior - TEAM CHAMPIONS
2007 & 2008 (Short Course) ISI - Senior - TEAM CHAMPIONS
2005 (Short Course) ISI - Age Group - TEAM CHAMPIONS
2008, 2007, and 2006 (Long Course) ISI - Age Group - RUNNERS UP
2006 (Short Course) ISI - Senior -RUNNERS UP
2008 & 2009 (Long Course) - TEAM OVERALL - RUNNERS UP
17 Iowa Swimming Inc. Records
13 USA-Swimming National Reportable Times (4 relays ranked / 6 individuals ranked)
18 ISI Age-Group / Division Titles
42 IHSAA & IGHSAU Ind. State Qualifiers / 11 Ind. Event Champions (5 swimmers)
71 Iowa Swimming Inc. - Ind. event title winners
48 Central Zone Qualifiers / 8 Ind. Event Champions (6 swimmers)
38 Central Zone - Speedo Sectional Meet Ind. Qualifiers (4 event Champions / 3 swimmers)
3 US Open Qualifiers
4 Jr. National Qualifiers
14 NCSA Junior Meet Qualifiers
2 USA-S Senior National Meet Qualifier
7 USMS National Qualifiers / 2 National Champions
1 US Olympic Trials - 2008 qualifier
Adam Osweiler – Head Assistant Coach
Adam is a former Dayton Raider (Dayton, Ohio), Fairborn High School (Fairborn,
Ohio) and Ohio University swimmer. Former Team Captain at Ohio University and four year letter recipient. Adam coached for the Cincinnati Marlins 2005-2006. Prior to that, he was a part time assistant coach for ICE ('04-'05). Adam also was a student assistant coach with Ohio Univeristy ('02-'03). This is Adam's fourth year at ICE as the Head Assistant Coach. Adam was awarded the 2008 Age Group Coach of the Year by the Iowa Swim Coaches Association. He has been a Zones Assistant Coach (2007 and 2009) and the 2008 All-Star Head Coach for Team Iowa. Adam was also the 2004 USMS National Champion in the 200 Butterfly. Adam has been coaching for 7 years and swimming for 20 years. Outside of the pool Adam enjoys listening to hip-hop, playing video games, cheering on the Boston Red Sox, spending time with his dog (Fenway), and working out (both in and out of the water).
ICE under Coach Adam Osweiler:
2008 Iowa Swimming Inc. - Age Group Coach of the Year
2006 ISI Long Course- TEAM OVERALL - CHAMPIONS
2009 ISI Long Course - TEAM OVERALL - RUNNERS UP
2007 & 2008 (Short Course) - ISI - Age Group - RUNNERS UP
2006, 2007 & 2008 (Long Course) - ISI - Age Group- RUNNERS UP
21 ISI Ind. event title winners
7 ISI Age-group/ Division Titles
18 Central Zone Qualifiers
20 State Records
148 Team Records
Head Assistant Coach's Job Description
ICE Part-time assistant coaching staff
Adam Yack - former ICE, City High, and Wooster College (OH) swimmer. While at Wooster he was team captain his Senior Year and scored at the conference meet (4 Year letterman) while swimming the 200 Fly and whatever else the team needed each meet. In high school Adam was a multiple IHSAA State Qualifier and place winner and was a member of the ISI Zones team twice in the 100M / 200M Fly and distance freestyle events. He currently works and lives in the Iowa City area. Adam speaks fluent Spanish, enjoys salsa dancing, and reads books about history / politics in his spare time.
Eric Jetter - former ICE swimmer and former asst. coach with Ames Cyclone Aquatic Club (ACAC-IA). During his time as an athlete at City High school and ICE Eric was an accomplished distance / mid-distance freestyler under the current ICE Head Coach (after being tricked into swimming the 1650 Free at ISI East Regionals his sophmore year). Eric is an ISU graduate and participated in the marching band while he was a student on a full academic scholarship. He is an LGI and WSI and worked as lifeguard / pool manager in the past for the City of Iowa City Rec. Department. Currently Eric is studying Chemistry at Iowa and has plans of going to graduate in school in the future. He has coached at the LSC, Midwestern All-Star, Sectional, and Grand Prix levels during the past three years. Eric's hobbies away from the pool include being a good "godfather" and role model for his niece, cheering for the Boston Red Sox, and mountian biking.
Michelle Koller - former Burlington (IA.) HS and UNI swimmer. Michelle grew up swimming with the Burlington, IA YMCA and summer swim teams. Currently she is the asst. coach for the Iowa City / City High girls swim team and is the Head Coach with the SE Jr. High girls program in Iowa City. She earned her MHA from the Univ. of Missouri. Michelle currently works at the UIHC. Michelle mainly helps with our Frost and Cube groups and works as substitute coach during the long course season for various levels of athletes on the club. She resides just outside the Iowa City area with her husband Ryan and son Tristan.
John Burkle - is the Head Coach for the City High boys and girls teams and formerly was a coach with the SE Jr. High swim programs. John is a graduate of West Branch HS, Univeristy of Iowa, and recieved his Masters from Drake University. John works at City High school as a social studies and history teacher. John helps ICE during the long course season mainly working with our Morays, Masters, and Cubes groups. John is also an avid triathlete, Smashing Pumpkins fan, Chicago Bears fan, and comic book collector.
Louis Christensen - former BLAST-IA and Waterloo West HS swimmer. Louis is currently a full time dental student at the Univ. of Iowa and a Masters swimmer with ICE. Louis has competed at the USA Swimming Sectional, National, and Grand Prix levels (as recently as 2008) and switched from being a IM'er to a sprinter after a two-year lay off during college. Over the past three seasons Louis has worked with all levels of swimmers on ICE and helped coach the team at Sectional and Grand Prix events. Louis enjoys looking at people's teeth, spending time in the outdoors and skiing, tailgating / cheering on the U of I Hawkeye football program, and hanging out with family and friends.
Stephanie Kristensen - formerly a USA-Swimming club swimmer (under the legendary coaching of Dave Joensen and Kelly Nordel) and YMCA swimmer from Ankeny, IA. She was a four year state qualifier for Ankeny high school concentrating on the sprint freestyle events and relays. Steph is a senior majoring in Math / Secondary Education and is a member Alpha Phi sorority at the Univ. of Iowa. She has coached at the age-group and masters levels during the past three years. She was also a lifeguard and swim lessons instructor for several years before becoming a coach. In her free time she enjoys working out, traveling, watching movies, and listening to Moby and all types of techno music.
The coaches can be reached by phone at: 351-3336 or by e-mail.
Don Spellman at: dspellman@iceels.org and Adam Osweiler at: aosweiler@iceels.org
