Ruggieri Named As New Women's Rowing Coach
August 10, 2000 | Rowing
Aug. 10, 2000
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Richard Ruggieri (pronounced "roo-JEER-ee"), head coach at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, this past year, has been named head coach of the University of Louisville women's rowing team.
"We're ecstatic to add an individual like Richard to our staff," said Director of Athletics Tom Jurich. "His experience in developing rowers to compete at both the national and international levels is impeccable. We will look for him to guide our young team and help it move up and join the nation's elite programs."
At Bates, Ruggieri coached both the men's and the women's programs last year and quickly led the first-year varsity squads to the national spotlight. As a team, both the men and the women finished seventh nationally among NCAA Division III squads, and the women's varsity 8+ crew placed 11th nationally among NCAA Division II and III boats.
Prior to his position at Bates, Ruggieri worked in Philadelphia where he served as head coach of the Vesper Boat Club (1999) and the Penn Athletic Club (1997-98), two of the top club rowing programs in the country.
"I am very excited about this opportunity and with the great support this program gets from the University," said Ruggieri. "This is a very exciting time for Louisville rowing as we look forward with great anticipation."
Ruggieri, 34, is no stranger to international competition. In 1998, he led the women's crew to a seventh-place finish at the World University Games in Zagreb, Croatia. As head coach of the U.S. Nation's Cup team in 1995, he guided the women's 2- squad to a bronze medal finish at the Under-23 World Championships.
Over the years, Ruggieri has worked extensively with USRowing and the United States National Team and has helped develop some of the top women's boats in the nation. In 1993, he served as the women's sculling coach during the Olympic Festival in San Antonio, Texas, and guided his team to a bronze medal.
As the head coach of development at the U.S. Women's Training Center in Chattanooga, Tenn., from 1994-95, Ruggieri's duties were to identify the top collegians, coach them and then help them move to the next level. To say he was successful in this position may be an understatement, as five of the nine members of the women's 8+ crew that will compete for the United States at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, were developed and coached by Ruggieri.
Since 1992, Ruggieri has coached more than 70 Elite and Senior championship boats, including 23 national champions and 55 medalists.
A native of Cranston, R.I., Ruggieri rowed four years for the University of Rhode Island and two more for the Thames River Sculls, a top rowing club in New England. He earned a bachelor's degree in physical education/physiology at Rhode Island in 1992.
Louisville enters its second season of intercollegiate competition this fall, and its first at the varsity level. As novices last year, the Cardinals won six gold medals, seven silver and three bronze in eight regattas. Furthermore, the two novice 8+ teams went unbeaten in five head-to-head races in the spring, with wins over Florida, Notre Dame, Indiana, Ohio State and Clemson.
