Upcoming Event: Swimming & Diving at Virginia Tech on October 25, 2025 at 2 p.m.
/
2 p.m.
Swimming & Diving
at Virginia Tech
Swimming & Diving
Thomas Rathbun
- Title:
- Assistant Coach
- Email:
- thomas.rathbun@duke.edu
Thomas Rathbun joined the Duke swimming and diving staff as an assistant coach in May 2019. He arrived in Durham after a season-long stint as the assistant men’s swimming and diving coach at DePauw University.
In his first year with the Blue Devils, Rathbun helped guide the program to the highest rankings in program history in the CSCAA Poll as the women finished the year ninth and the men reached 15th in the November edition. Rathbun also saw 10 student-athletes qualify for the 2020 NCAA Championships but ultimately were unable to compete due to the event being cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In result, all 10 Blue Devils earned CSCAA All-America honors. In addition to success in the pool, 26 Blue Devils earned CSCAA Scholar All-America honors.
Rathbun assisted the DePauw program to a 3-3 record and a third place finish in the conference championships. Prior to coaching, Rathbun was a four-year varsity swimmer at the University of Iowa. While a Hawkeye, he was a finalist at the Big Ten Championships and the U.S. Open.
He finished his swimming career with top-10 times in University of Iowa history in three events. In the 200 backstroke, he holds the fourth best time of 1:43.26. He holds the school record in the 800 freestyle relay with a time of 6:24.93. In the 500 freestyle, he holds the 10th fastest time with 4:22.38.
A native of Sioux Center, Iowa, Rathbun graduated from the University of Iowa in 2018 with a bachelor of arts degree in environmental science.
Duke Athletics: A Tour of Campus
Saturday, October 19
A Century of Blue Devil Brilliance
Saturday, October 19
Senior Social Kick: Kevin Explains Cubed Food Theory
Friday, March 10
Senior Social Kick: Brad Solves a Rubik's Cube
Friday, March 10
