Meet the Coaches
NOTE: If you would like your swimmer to have private lessons, please reach out to one of the coaches listed below. Thank You.
HEAD COACH NEAL McELHATTAN
nvmcelhattan@gmail.com
Neal grew up in Vienna, VA where he swam in the winter for York Swim Club on the National team and spent his summers swimming in the NVSL for the Dunn Loring Dolphins. He attended George C. Marshall High School, where he was a 3x VHSL State Finalist in the 100 Butterfly and 100 Backstroke, received the Most Outstanding Player award for Men’s Swimming his senior year, and still holds the school record in the 100 Fly. After high school, he attended Old Dominion University where he continued to swim as a NCAA Division I athlete, earning his spot on the 400 medley and 200 medley relays which came in 3rd and 2nd at the CCSA championships, and being voted team captain his junior and senior year. He graduated from ODU with a B.S. in Finance in 2022.
Neal began coaching with his summer league team, first as a mini’s coach and then as an assistant coach. He is a USA Swimming Coach for Machine Aquatics and has been a NVSL head coach for the past two summers. He is ecstatic about being the Head Coach for the Marlins. GO MARLINS!
ASSISTANT HEAD COACH DARBY GALBRAITH
darby.galbraith1000@gmail.com
Hi my name is Darby Galbraith and I am so excited to coach for the Marlins this summer!! I grew up in Vienna, Virginia swimming year-round with Machine Aquatics and spent my summers swimming and coaching in NVSL at Vienna Aquatic Club. I worked as a junior coach for 4 years before becoming the assistant coach for the Gators for 3 years. I previously held 2 NVSL records in the 13-14 200-medley Relay and the 15-18 50-yard backstroke. I attended James Madison High School in Vienna Virginia where I am a 3-time VHSL State Champ as well as a 4-time first-team all-state member. I am a rising senior at the University of South Carolina obtaining a B.S. in Retail Management where I am also a member of the Division 1 Swimming and Diving team specializing in the backstroke and butterfly events. I am so excited to share my love and passion for the sport of swimming this summer with the Marlins!
FUTURE MARLINS & GROUP LESSONS HEAD COACH / MARLINS ASSISTANT COACH MAYA SHARMA
sharmaya19@icloud.com
Maya started swim lessons in 2009, and joined the Future Marlins program in 2011. She became a member of her club team, FISH, in the fall of 2012. This May, she will be graduating from The Madeira School, where she was a member of the varsity swim team for four years, and was a team captain her senior year. She was also a member of their State Team, and her favorite event was the 500 free. Maya started her coaching career as a Future Marlins coach in 2019. In 2022, she started coaching the Mini Fish program for her club team. She is looking forward to another fun summer with the Marlins!
ASSISTANT COACH JACK FORDE
jpforde01@gmail.com
My name is Jack Forde, I've been a Marlin for 12 years and a swimmer for just as long. I'm currently studying ecology and evolutionary biology at CU Boulder, and I'm a swimmer there as well. My favorite things about the Marlins are our spirit, attitude, and volume. My best strokes have always been breast and free, but fly holds a special place in my heart too. If you ask me to swim any backstroke though, I think I'd rather walk all the way back to Colorado. I'm best at coaching higher level stroke-work and technique, but I can definitely work on a swimmer with the basics too. I'm looking forward to starting my time as a coach and feasting on D2 this year!
ASSISTANT COACH ANNA LASZLO
annallaszlo@icloud.com
Anna is a freshman at Penn State studying Communications. Anna joined the McLean Marlins when she was 5 years old. Anna has swum for the Marlins in the summers while in the winters swimming for York Swim Club and the McLean High School Swim Team. Anna has coached for the future Marlins, Kent Gardens Swim club, private lessons, and as a soccer coach for MYS. Anna is a former Marlins club champion ( she won all of her individual races in a season), she has a couple of Marlins and NVSL relay records and was a member of the Marlins team who won the NVSL All Star relays. Anna is looking forward to the season and the Marlin Spirit.
ASSISTANT COACH KEVIN CAMPBELL
kjammarlins1@gmail.com
Kevin joined the McLean Marlins when he was 4 years old after he moved to McLean and realized MSTA was right in his backyard. Kevin has swam for the Marlins in the summers while in the winters swimming for York Swim Club and the McLean High School Swim Team, being named a captain his Junior and Senior years. Kevin has coached for the future marlins, Norman Swimming, private lessons, and the Swim Farm over the course of the last 4 years. Kevin is super excited to be an assistant coach and amp up the Marlin Spirit and take on Division 2.
ASSISTANT COACH OWEN THIEBERT
omthiebert@gmail.com
Hello Marlins! My name is Owen Thiebert. I am a junior at Mclean High School. I have been swimming since I was 5 years old and have been swimming competitively since I was 13. Outside of the pool, I'm on the track team for Mclean High School, volunteer regularly helping local animal shelters, and enjoy hiking. I can't wait to see everyone on the pool deck, and I'm looking forward to pep rallies and Saturday meets. See you all very soon!
