The French Swimming Federation plugged one hole with a major hiring, but at the same time another major gap has been created.
The federation announced that Denis Auguin, previously the director of the French competitive swimming teams, has been appointed as national technical director, according to L’Equipe. He will oversee all facets of French swimming and diving.
“(Auguin) will ensure a cross-functional approach across all five Olympic disciplines within the Federation: competitive swimming, open water, diving, artistic swimming, and water polo,” the federation said in a release. “He will pay particular attention to balancing the demands of high-level swimming with the development of practices across the country.”
The 55-year-old Auguin had been the director of the competitive swimming teams since 2021.
Auguin takes over for Julien Issoulie, who in May left the position as national technical director after eight years to take over the country’s canoeing and kayaking programs.
Of course, the big question now is who will replace Auguin as director of the competitive swim program, particularly with the World Championships in Singapore upcoming from July 27 to Aug. 4.
Following the Paris Olympics, Jacco Verhaeren left his role as national performance director of the French Swimming Federation to take a job with the Royal Dutch Swimming Federation in his native Netherlands.
It’s unclear whether the French Swimming Federation will fill both vacant roles, or just combine them into one position.
In the early 2000s, Auguin was a coach at Club Marseille, coaching Alain Bernard after Bernard joined the club at age 16 to train under Auguin. At the 2008 Beijing Games, Bernard won gold in the 100 freestyle, bronze in the 50 free, and silver as a member of France’s 4×100 free relay team. He won another gold medal at the 2012 London Games as part of France’s winning 4×100 free relay team.
Bernard also previously held world records in the 50 and 100 free.
Auguin served as a commentator for French TV at the 2016 Rio Games before being appointed the national team’s coach in 2021.
France won seven total swimming medals at the Paris Games, headlined by Leon Marchand’s four gold medals in pool events.
