by Alexis Spier–Former collegiate swimmer Alex Guelcher has joined the Morningside swim coaching staff for the 2023-24 season.
Guelcher went to Sioux City North High School and graduated in 2016. He then went to college at the University of South Dakota where he swam competitively for four years. Every year he qualified for the National Championship and received a letter award.
Alex’s father, Greg, is a professor at Morningside where he teaches history. His mother, Yumiko, is from Toyama, Japan.
Growing up Guelcher would visit Japan every year, and before he joined the Morningside swim coaching staff, he had been living in Japan for five years. He worked as an assistant language teacher.
“I had an incredible experience,” said Guelcher. “I was really torn about staying in Japan or coming back to America, but in the end I decided to come back home and find something new to do. I’ve always had a passion for swimming, and I used to be a club swim coach, so before I came to America I talked to Bryan Farris [the head swim coach at Morningside University], and he gave me the assistant coach position.”
Guelcher is looking into a possible career as a sales representative for a medical company his friend works at. However, he is leaning towards a job from home, so he can keep his focus on his current coaching position and be a positive influence for the Morningside swimmers.
His Japanese roots are planted deep, and he hopes to one day use his bilingual skills to land him a job where he can feel connected to his home in America and in Japan.
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