The Panama City Swim Team (PCST) announced the appointment of Scott Fortier as the team’s new head coach on Monday.
Fortier comes to the club after leaving his previous position as head coach of both the St. Croix Dolphins and the Virgin Islands National Team in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Fortier expressed his enthusiasm to start working at PCST in a message to the team that was shared in the official release.
“I can’t wait to get to work with you!” Fortier said. “As your coach, my goal is to help you gain a deeper love for swimming and to help you reach your dreams, regardless of the level you are at. I look forward to building lasting relationships with everyone who is a part of this program.”
A native of the Florida panhandle, Fortier swam competitively with the Area Tallahassee Aquatics Club while growing up and still holds multiple club records today. Highlights from his swimming career include qualifying for the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials and becoming a Junior National finalist and Florida Swimming record holder.
Fortier competed for the University of Alabama before an injury ended his competitive swimming career midway through college. He served as a student assistant coach for the swim team for his remaining two years at Alabama.
After graduating in 2017, Fortier headed to Baton Rouge, Louisiana; he acted as a volunteer assistant coach for Louisiana State University, where he coached the distance group, and was a senior coach for Tiger Aquatics.
He went on to become a full-time assistant coach at the University of Cincinnati, where he was later promoted to the men’s director of recruiting. Fortier also met his wife, Caitey, while in Cincinnati, and in 2023 the couple moved to the Virgin Islands to take up international coaching positions.
The Fortiers began searching for coaching roles closer to home following the birth of their son, which happened to align with PCST’s search for a new head coach.
Brian Stahl, President of the PCST Board of Directors, commented on the hiring of Fortier.
“We want the Panama City Swim Team to offer opportunities to teach competitive skills both in and out of the water, and we are excited to have someone with Scott’s talents and experience to lead our team,” Stahl said.
PCST is a competitive swim club local to Panama City, Florida, that has operated under the guidelines of USA Swimming for 70 years.
