outh Florida, and the Dave & Mary Alper JCC, have one of the “crown jewels” of the swimming community. Coach Robert Strauss has been in South Florida for over 25 years, since moving from his hometown of Mexico City. Coach Strauss found his passion for swimming at an early age when he began his competitive swimming career for the JCC equivalent in Mexico. Coach Strauss represented Mexico internationally, as he swam in the 1972 Olympics in Munich, the World Maccabiah Games in ’69 and ’73, and numerous Central American championships.
The University of Miami offered Coach Strauss a scholarship, so that he could bring his swimming talents to Coral Gables, and he accepted. Today, Coach Strauss has devoted himself to swim teaching and coaching, he has taught over 25,000 swimmers in south Florida how to swim. Among them have been national and world-record holders, swimmers on numerous all-city teams. In turn, he has sent them on to top-flight universities.
Strauss has recently been on the international speaking circuit, having presented to aquatics conferences in Argentina, Spain, Germany, Mexico and France. He also recently was selected to speak at the American Swim Coaches Association conference, which will be held later this year in San Diego.
The Dave & Mary Alper JCC is honored to have Robert; his wife, Jennie; and their Swim Gym Aquatics program operating the many swim programs at the Miami center.
— Paul Frishman, M. Ed.
Kendall, Fla.
