The Capitol Sea Devils is a non-profit corporation founded in Washington, D.C. in 1967 with the goal to provide swimming instruction and competition opportunities to swimmers in the District of all ages and abilities. In the intervening fifty-plus years Sea Devils has grown to over 500 swimmers, from ages 5-65, training in sites across D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. Our swimmers have consistently proven themselves to be among the best in the nation, reaching the highest levels of age group, junior, and senior national competition. Many of our swimmers have gone on to outstanding swimming and academic careers in colleges and universities throughout the country.
Our History The Capitol Sea Devils (TCSD) was founded by Elizabeth Jane Stafford as part of the Widening Horizons Program, a philanthropic effort of the US Dept. of Defense aimed at bringing academic and athletic mentors to provide training to local youth. Stafford, a civilian military employee, had assisted head coaches Jim Campbell and Stan Tinkham with the Walter Reed Army Medical Hospital women’s swim team which had won consecutive National AAU Team Championships in 1954 and 1955. Stafford was contracted to provide her services as coach and mentor with what was to become one of the first ethnically integrated AAU programs in the nation.
Our Mission To provide excellence in professional coaching and programs that help swimmers achieve their maximum potential and strengthen their work ethic, self-esteem, and respect for others. TCSD offers a series of graduated programs that provide quality instruction and training with an end toward creating a lifelong love for a lifelong sport. Our program takes a conservative approach to developing elite swimmers in an effort to avoid burnout in a sport that sees a high dropout rate prior to college. Our coaches focus attention on stroke mechanics, conditioning, and overall physical development to ensure swimmers still reach an elite level of competition while maintaining their desire for improvement and the sport as a whole.
Join Us! We run programs out of South Run RECenter in Springfield, VA, St. Albans School and Wilson Aquatic Center in D.C., Holton-Arms School in Bethesda, MD, and at a new site this season, The Bender JCC in Rockville, MD. Our registration for the 2021-2022 season opens mid-June and can be found on our website www.SeaDevils.org. Feel free to contact Head Coach, Ian Handerhan at [email protected] with any questions. We look forward to seeing everyone back on deck in the fall.
