Mike Troy Named National Swim Teacher of the Year

A national award was recently bestowed upon an area swim school operator who teaches many Maricopa kids the life-skill of swimming. Mike Troy, owner of Gold Medal Swim School in Chandler, was awarded the prestigious National Teacher of the Year award by the United States Swim School Association.

Nicole Matcuk, a Maricopa resident whose three year-old daughter and 17-month old son have both taken lessons from Mike and his Gold Medal Swim School since they were six months old, is not surprised by his being selected 2004 National Teacher of the Year. “Mike is very interested in the well being of all the students, and I think that personal level interaction makes him an excellent teacher,” Matcuk said. “He deserved the Teacher of the Year Award; he is the best in our book!”

Mike Troy (center) is congratulated by U.S. Swim School Association Board members Bob Hubbard and Sue Mackie at his Chandler swim school.

Like so many, Troy fell in love with swimming as a youngster in the swimming pool. However, what he achieved as an athlete in the pool – and since as a teacher out of it – is unparalleled. His many athletic accomplishments include:

• Two -time Olympic Gold Medalist (1960)
• World Record Holder
• NCAA Champion
• AAU Champion
• International Swimming Hall of Fame
• Indiana University Hall of Fame
• Helms Arco Hall of Fame

But it was Troy’s daily commitment to teaching kids and what he did to help others achieve their Olympic dreams that led to his selection as Teacher of the Year. Troy spent much of the year away from his business after accepting the position of director of the 2004 U.S. Paralympic Swim Team. Among his team of 45 athletes were dwarfs, amputees and swimmers affected by cerebral palsy, spina bifida and blindness. Together, they won 16 Olympic gold medals, 37 total medals, and set six world and 90 American records.