Moreton Bay College and Moreton Bay Boys’ College have appointed Australian Olympic Team swimming coach, David Lush, as Director of Swimming for the colleges and the recently formed swimming club, Moreton Bay Swimming.
“As part of our ongoing commitment to provide high quality co-curricular experiences for our boys and girls, we are delighted to welcome David to our colleges and excited by the opportunities that lie ahead for our swimmers,” says Janet Stewart, Head of College, Moreton Bay College.
“David brings with him unparalleled coaching experience and swimming success and we look forward to a strong future for the colleges’ swimming programme and Moreton Bay Swimming Club under David’s leadership,” says Andrew Holmes, Head of College, Moreton Bay Boys’ College. It is a very exciting time for our colleges.”
David has assisted with coaching athletes to success at Olympic level in Swimming, Triathlon and Water Polo as well as World Championships in Surf-Lifesaving. He is best known for his expertise in backstroke and guiding several athletes to Gold medals at Olympic and World Championships. He also established the Brisbane Grammar School Swimming Club, which by 2014, had grown to one of Australia’s top ranked swimming clubs. During his 11-year tenure, BGS finished 1st or a close 2nd in the GPS swimming championships on 7 occasions.
Significantly, David is one of only 3 coaches whose swimmers have won a gold medal at every major international meet since 2015 – Including World Championships, Commonwealth Games and Olympics
“I am excited about the opportunity to rebuild The Moreton Bay Colleges’ swimming programme and work with such a talented group of girls and boys,” says David Lush, Director of Swimming at Moreton Bay Colleges.
In 2015, David coached both the World Champion and World Junior Champion in the 100/200m Backstroke – a feat yet to be replicated by another swimming coach. He also guided Emily Seebohm to 3 Gold medals at these World Championships.
In 2016, David was selected as a member of the Australian Olympic Team, guiding Brittany Elmslie to a Gold Medal and World Record, in the women’s 4x100m Freestyle Relay, swimming alongside Cate and Bronte Campbell and Shayna Jack. Three months later, Brittany Elmslie went on to beat 4 Olympic Champions, in the 100m Freestyle, at the World Short Course Championships.
He was awarded the 2017 Coach of the Year, as well as the Don Talbot Award, for guiding Emily Seebohm to Australia’s only Gold Medal at the 2017 World Championships. Emily’s time of 2:05.45, still stands as the Commonwealth and Australian Record.
David joined Scott Talbot, as Australian Team Lead Coach for 2018 World Short Course Championships, during which Lush was awarded an honorarium from the FINA technical committee, for service to the World Coaches Convention. In 2018, Lush was presented with the Platinum coaching award, joining a small group of only 25 coaches who have achieved this prestigious milestone. David is President of asctaQLD and was elected by his peers to the National ascta board in 2018.
Building on the strong swimming culture at the colleges, The Moreton Bay Colleges’ Swimming Club (Moreton Bay Swimming) was formed in 2019 and is run from the Aquatic Centre at Moreton Bay College. The club caters for recreational and competitive swimmers and provides competition opportunities. The club runs alongside the school swimming programme, enabling students at Moreton Bay College and Moreton Bay Boys’ College to enjoy the benefits of competitive swimming and a representative pathway.
