Elijah Gatica
- Acting Head Coach
Primary Squads: National Age Performance, National Target Squads
Qualification: Swimming Australia accredited coach
Eli is a former national level swimmer who started coaching in 2017. He has worked across all levels of swimming from learn to swim to high performance, guiding multiple swimmers to state and national age medals and finals, as well as Victorian, New South Wales, Canberra, and Queensland state records and titles.
Eli has worked closely with Australian Team representatives at St Andrews Swimming Club on the Sunshine Coast. There he worked in a National Development role and also as an assistant to the High Performance Squad coach working closely with Australian Team members.
Eli believes a coach plays a significant role in instilling values and a strong work ethic in athletes. He believes every athlete’s unique personality should be fostered and creates a fun, positive, and supportive environment for long term success in and out of the pool.
Eli plays a key role in developing Surrey Park’s top Age Group Swimmers to represent Surrey Park at National Age competitions. His key focus is on technical excellence and providing a pathway for our future champions.
Key achievements
- Selected as a coach for talent pathway programs in VIC, NSW, and ACT
- Coach of state and national age medalists, finalists, record breakers, and title holders
