Both Shawn Klosterman and Steve Boyce have announced their retirements, marking the departures of a pair of longtime southwest Missouri swimming figures.
Klosterman has served as the Webb City School District’s Aquatic director for 27 years, first beginning the role in 1999. In his role, he oversaw the school district’s aquatic programs and facilities.
Klosterman confirmed his departure on his Facebook in December, captioning the post “Yeah… It’s official. Excited to move on to a new life, but I will forever bleed Cardinal Red.”
Klosterman recently got married, and in his Facebook post, he mentioned plans to move to Springfield, Missouri, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Physical Education at Missouri State University.
He was one of seven district employees to announce their retirements in December, and together they carried 122 years of experience within the district.
Boyce retires after 26 years as a head coach, having spent time at Glendale, Republic, and Ozark High Schools. In his time as a head coach, Boyce won 9 state championships, produced 27 individual state champions, and had 245 swimmers earn all-state honors.
In a report from local news outlet KY3, fellow career coaches say that his retirement leaves an “irreplaceable void in Missouri High School Swimming”. Since the beginning of his coaching career in 1996, Boyce has led at least one swimmer to a top-16 finish in nearly every season.
“You know I still love what I do, I didn’t want to get to the point where I didn’t love coming to work and working with the kids every day,” Boyce said in a report from KY3. “So I’m excited to be on to new horizons and see what I can finally do.”
Boyce’s impact has been felt across the state and has earned praise from fellow head coaches, some even going so far as to call him the “best coach in the state.”
He really is, in my opinion, the best coach in the state. Just as a person, he does a great job of motivating people,” said Logan-Rogersville and Springfield Central Head Coach Joseph Price in the report from KY3. “Not just the swimmers, but like all of the other coaches, to maintain a level of excellence.”
Steve also coached Parkway South high school in the St. Louis area to a state championship.
Let’s not forget Shawn also started Berzerker swim club which has been a fantastic representation of swimming in our area and he has coached some amazing athletes!
Skål, to The Screaming Viking on his next chapter!