Athletes mutter amongst themselves as a new face walks onto the court. Quizzical glances are exchanged between athletes and the newcomer as they group in a huddled mass. The stranger, racket in one hand, headband clenched in the other, looks up and scans the group. He smiles, nods and introduces himself. “Hey guys, my name is David Siu and I’m going to be the new JV head coach.”

Before the spring season for sports started, teams held meetings and conditioning practices to meet the new head coaches.

The badminton team and  swimming team, as well as the men’s varsity and JV tennis teams, have all gained new coaches this season. The men’s JV tennis and varsity swimming head coaches are entirely new to the school, but the badminton and varsity men’s tennis coaches have previously worked with Piedmont  teams before as assistant or lower level coaches.

“I didn’t realize we were getting new coaches until recently,” said two-year JV player junior Andrew Newcomb. “I’m sure they’ll have a positive impact on the team.”

Incoming coaches with no previous history coaching Piedmont teams come from extensive backgrounds of experience coaching and playing.

“I’ve played for 12 years and have been coaching children younger than high school for approximately five,” head JV tennis coach David Siu said.

Being a previous varsity tennis player at Piedmont, Siu is excited to be working at the high school level.

“This is an excellent opportunity to work with older kids,” Siu said. “I’ve only worked with younger kids prior to this.”

Jim Landes, the previous JV men’s tennis coach and new varsity coach, explained the effect new coaches often have on teams, regardless of the sport.

“At first, it’s a little uncomfortable,” Landes said. “Even if the coach worked with them previously, [coaches] need to reassess themselves and their athletes, looking at the team in a whole new perspective.”

Landes, who has coached the JV team for 12 years, has transitioned into being the varsity coach in place of Neil Rothenberg, who is voluntarily leaving his position.

He plans to retain his coaching style for varsity but also wants to emphasize student participation in organizing practice.

“I don’t want to always tell them what to do,” Landes said. “I’m not the only one that needs to push them to get better, they need to push themselves.”

For the badminton team, former assistant coach Norman Lam has taken the lead as the head coach for the varsity level. Lam, with over 20 years of experience in playing and coaching badminton, holds similar values to Landes.

“There’s great importance in the leadership role,” Lam said. “The people that are willing to go the extra mile, especially with enthusiasm, really get the team in shape.”

As a coach that has worked with the team previously, Lam does not plan to change how he coaches the athletes drastically, but rather focus more on athlete leadership.

“I do my role during practice,” Lam said. “The students who have determination show their passion will practice outside of school and ultimately improve faster.”

For swimming, Colby Price has replaced John Savage as the team’s head coach.

Upon   preparing  for the  upcoming season,  the head coaches said they are enthusiastic about their new positions and even more thrilled about the abundance of athletes coming  out  to  play in the new  season.

“I’m  incredibly excited for the team this year,” Landes said. “I know no matter which athletes make the team, we will both be successful and have a lot of fun in the upcoming season.”