Grant Kritinzer appointed Sirens ASC Head Coach
Grant Kritinzer, best known as the coach who guided Andrew Chetcuti to two Olympics, has been appointed Sirens ASC’s Head Coach and Daniela Deguara Gatt as his assistant.
Chetcuti, who announced his retirement, last month, participated in the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games.
“Grant to me is the best coach in the world: we’ve been through so much together”, said the two-times Olympian.
“We’ve had our ups and downs and I’ve always said Grant is like a second dad to me, he’s talked and helped me through everything. He is somebody who is so calm. I have never seen him stressed. He is one of those people that if you do see him angry you know you’ve affected him, that he means business, which I really like. We’ve had an amazing journey together.”
Grant’s appointment comes as no surprise: the previous Head Coach, Craig Gibbons, returning to his native Great Britain.
With more than 11 years coaching experience, Grant Kritzinger will coach Sirens ASC teams as they prepare for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
He established himself as the Director and Head Coach of Players Swim Club in South Africa.
He was Coach of Malta National Team to Small Nations Games (Luxembourg 2013) who won the most medals ever by Malta and also assisted as Coach for Malta at the World Short Course Championships (Dubai 2010) amongst others.
Grant Kritzinger was selected as Coach for South African Junior Team to attend African Youth Games (Botswana 2014) and as Assistant Coach with three swimmers to represent South Africa at the BHP Billiton Aquatic Series (Perth 2014). Grant Kritzinger coached several South African World Championship Qualifiers and South African Junior Record Holders.
As Sirens ASC Head Coach, he will try to unite younger coaches and share opinions in order to take Maltese swimmers to a higher level with the aim to qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Speaking at a press conference, Grant Kritzinger said: “We do not have much time before 2020, but I promise to do my best for qualification at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. This is the reason why I accepted to be the Head Coach of this team.”
Sirens ASC President Lino Vella said: “Our goal at Tokyo 2020 is to qualify. I hope that Kritzinger will improve our level and also help to grow each player’s personality.”