Pomphrey Earns USOC Volunteer Coach of the Year Award

Neil Pomphrey, a longtime assistant coach of the Princeton men's squash program, was presented with the 2017 United States Olympic Committee Volunteer Coach of the Year Award.

Pomphrey just completed his 27th year as an assistant with Princeton squash, first under U.S. Squash Hall of Fame coach Bob Callahan and now in his sixth season under head coach Sean Wilkinson. He also acts as one of the team's Academic Athletic Fellows.

"Neil has been the centerpiece of Princeton squash for generations of players, and it's not hard to see why he's consistently among the first things alumni ask about," rising senior Henry Parkhurst said. "Not only is he incredibly generous with his time, he also has a knack for breaking down complex ideas with simple language, both on and off court. He has helped me and my teammates enormously with squash, math homework, and everyday challenges throughout our time here, for no credit beyond his love of teaching."

Pomphrey with With Pomphrey, Princeton has won nine Ivy League titles and won the 2012 national team championship.

"I know that I can speak for the entire Princeton Squash community in congratulating Neil on his well-deserved award," Wilkinson said. "Neil has been a stalwart of both men's and women's squash at Princeton for the better part of 25 years, and his impact on these young women and men will last all of their lives. Neil is beyond a doubt one of the best in the business. His commitment to our student-athletes goes beyond coaching and tutoring - Neil is so incredibly thoughtful about what is best for each athlete, and his ability to communicate that is really something special. One of Bob's firs pieces of advice to me in 2013 was to make sure I did everything in my power to keep Neil as part of the program. He has been instrumental in helping me rebuild the program and I will be forever grateful to him (and Ann for allowing him the time!) for his help over the last six years. What an incredible person and we are so lucky to have him."

Pomphrey has donated his expertise to the national squash community by developing and helping to maintain the ranking algorithm currently used by the College Squash Association (CSA) for both team and individual rankings.

A native of Scotland and a nationally-ranked squash player in the U.S., Pomphrey recently retired from his position as a Principal Research Physicist at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.

The USOC Volunteer Coach of the Year is given out annually to a coach who exhibits the core squash values of service, support and fellowship without thought of recompense.

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