Lea Maurer’s Stanford Swim Camp Stanford, California
Located only 30 minutes south of San Francisco on the beautiful Stanford University campus, Lea Maurer's Stanford Swim Camp is designed to help competitive swimmers from around the world improve their stroke technique.
Upon arrival at camp, campers are placed in groups with other swimmers having similar abilities and goals. Our camp staff will do their best to accommodate your needs, keeping in consideration your experience and desire to improve.
For campers seeking a multi-week program, connect Lea Maurer's camp sessions with those directed by Skip Kenny for a two, three or four week program. Campers may purchase an extra night stayover in between each session.
Every camper has the opportunity to work with Lea Maurer, as she is on the pool deck during each swim session.
Campers train daily in the Avery Aquatic Complex, featuring 2 Olympic sized pools and a diving pool with platform. This is one of the most state of the art swimming facilities in the United States and served as the training site for the 2004 and 2008 Olympic teams
This camp is open to any and all entrants. For your safety and benefit, we recommend you have competitive swimming experience (e.g. U.S.S. age group, national qualifiers, high school swimmers, or summer league swimmers) and can swim at least 50 meters in all four competitive strokes: fly, back, breast and freestyle.
Meet your coaching staff
Camp Director
Lea Maurer
Lea Maurer enters her seventh year as the head coach of her alma mater in the fall of 2011. During her six-year tenure, the Cardinal have never finished lower than fifth at the NCAA Championships (fifth in 2006, fourth in 2007, third in 2008, fourth in 2009, second in 2010 and fourth in 2011). Stanford has won back-to-back Pac-10 titles.
Maurer has coached at least 15, top-16 performances at the national meet in each of her six championships, leading to 11 NCAA champions and top-16 finishes in all five relays each season. At the Pac-10s, she has coached at least five Pac-10 individual champions in each of the last five years.
During her first six years on The Farm, Maurer has coached swimmers onto teams representing the United States at the World Championships, Pan Pacific Championships, World University Games and the Olympics. In 2008, two of Maurer's charges - Elaine Breeden and Julia Smit - combined to win three relay medals for America at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China. Breeden and Smit were also both first team Academic All-Americans, Breeden, earning the award two times.
In her six years upon the Stanford pool deck, she has guided her teams to a 57-4 dual meet record. Her 2006-07 team finished a perfect 10-0 in dual meets and was tabbed the top dual meet team in the country by the College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) for the first time in program history. The 2011 senior class lost just two dual meets during their careers (once their freshman year and once in 2011).
The 2009-10 was her best to date, featuring Breeden and Smit, swimming their senior seasons. The seniors led the Cardinal to just short of the national title (2.5 points), with Breeden winning both butterflies and Smit, winning both individual medleys. The Cardinal also closed out the meet by winning the 400 free relay. The Cardinal, which was ranked No. 1 for much of the year and won the Pac-10 title, also featured five national runner-up finishes. The Cardinal also won six individual Pac-10 titles and the last three relays.
Maurer's coaching influence can be seen throughout the Stanford record books, as nine members of the last year's Cardinal combined to own 31 spots in the school's all-time top-10 lists entering the season.
The 2007-08 campaign included a third-place finish at the NCAA Championships, as Stanford finished the regular season ranked second in the CSCAA's poll, a mere two points behind Georgia. Maurer's 2006-07 team went 10-0 in dual meet competition, finished second at the Pac-10 Championships and concluded the season with a fourth-place showing at the NCAA Championships. In her first season in 2005-06, Maurer led the Cardinal to a fifth-place finish at the NCAA Championships.
Since arriving on The Farm, Maurer coached Stanford alum Tara Kirk (2004) to American records in both the 100 and 200 yard breaststroke in 2006 with times of 57.77 and 2:05.73, respectively. Kirk also won a silver at the 2007 World Championships. Breeden set an American and NCAA record in the 200 fly and Smit set world, American, U.S. and NCAA records int the 200 and 400 individual medleys throughout her career.
Maurer was a member of Team USA's coaching staff for the 2007 Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, helping Smit swim away with five medals (four gold, one silver). Smit's meet was highlighted by her 200 IM victory with a Pan American Games record performance.
Maurer began her collegiate coaching career in 1994-95 as an assistant at Northwestern, which placed 11th at the NCAA's and third in the Big-10 in her only season.
The following year, she began a prep dynasty as the head boys' and girls' coach at Lake Forest High School in Lake Forest, Illinois, leading the boys' squad to the 2002-03 mythical national championship and the girls' team to the mythical 2003 public school national championship. She coached 2003 National High School Swimmer of the Year Matt Grevers, who recorded the second-fastest prep time ever in the 50 free and went on to become a two-time NCAA champion at Northwestern before winning three medals at the 2008 Olympics.
During her 10-year run at Lake Forest, her girls' team also won a pair of state titles (2002, '03) while her boys' squad earned the honor in 2003, which were all unprecedented accomplishments for the school. In addition, she was named the Illinois Swimming Association Coach of the Year on eight occasions (five girls, three boys) while coaching her swimmers to 85 All-American and honorable mention All-American awards, as well as nine individual and seven relay state titles, and six high school state records.
A former Stanford swimmer from 1991 to 1994, Maurer (formerly Loveless) swam on three of Stanford's national championship squads (1992, '93, '94). Maurer won three consecutive wins in the 100 back (1992, '93, '94) as well as a 200 back victory in 1993. She was also a member of six winning NCAA relay teams. Maurer added 15 Pac-10 titles (seven individual, eight relays) and 21 All-American honors (19 at Stanford). She was inducted into the Stanford Athletic Hall of Fame in November of 2006.
Maurer continued to compete until 2000, spending a total of 11 years (1989-96, 1998-2000) on the U.S. National Team. Maurer held the American record in the 100 meter back from 1992-2001, originally setting the mark on the leadoff leg of a gold medal 4x100 American medley relay team at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, where she also earned a bronze medal in the 100 back. She broke her own 100 back record during the preliminaries at the 1998 World Championships and went on to win the gold medal. Maurer earned a spot on the USA Swimming All-Century team in the 100 back.
Maurer graduated from Stanford with a bachelor's degree in American Studies and a Master's in education in 1994. She is married to her current volunteer assistant coach Erik Maurer, who won the 1992 NCAA title in the 50 free and four relay crowns while competing for the Cardinal from 1989-93. The couple has two children, Luke and Rex.
Assistant Coach
Chris Morgan
Chris Morgan begins his first season at Stanford as the team's top assistant for women's swimming. He has coached three Olympians at the 2008 Games in Beijing, Switzerland's Jonathan Massacand, Barbados' Andrei Cross and Montenegro's Marina Kuc.
Staff
Kathy Walker
Kathy Walker enters her 9th year as the Head Swimming and Diving Coach at the College of Saint Benedict. Additionally since 1999 she has been the Director of the Stanford Swim Camp under Lea Maurer.
A detailed camper registration packet containing check in location, health/release forms, emergency contact info, and a list of things to bring will be emailed to all registered campers in the Spring. Our health and release forms do not require a doctor's signature and they will be collected on the first day of camp.
Day Camp:
- Campers will arrive each day at 8:30 am and leave at 3:00 pm
Overnight Camps:
- Check-in takes place between 3:00pm-5:00pm on Sunday (July 15th) for Lea Maurer's Session I and Saturday (July 21st) for Lea Maurer's Session II
- Check-out takes place between 11:00am-12:00pm on Friday (July 20th) for Lea Maurer's Session I and Thursday (July 26th) for Lea Maurer's Session II
- Campers are invited to attend more than one session. There is a $100 overnight fee to stay in-between sessions.
Transportation is not provided by the camp to or from any airports. If you are flying to or from the San Jose Airport or San Francisco International Airport we recommend VIP Airport Shuttle (1-800-235-8847, www.vipairportshuttle.com). Please schedule flights as close as you can to the check-in times on the first day and check-out times on the last day.
Sample Daily Schedule
- 7:15 am Breakfast
- 8:30 am Extended Day Campers arrive
- 9:00 am Morning swim session
- 11:00 am Dry Land and Flexibility session
- Noon Lunch, rest and free-time
- 2:00 pm Afternoon swim session
- 5:30 pm Dinner and rest
- 7:00 pm Evening activities, games, camp store
- 8:30/9:00 pm Extended Day Campers depart
- 10:00 pm Lights out!
Can't wait to go again!
"Swim camp was awesome- I learned new things and made new friends. I can't wait to go again this summer!"
Great quality camp.
“My daughter was very impressed with the coaching staff and how they took a personal interest in each swimmer. We will definitely be back next year!”
Jessica S.
Fantastic!
“The instruction was fantastic. The staff was friendly, experienced and very skilled. I learned a lot and had a GREAT time!!”
Coach Maurer was very involved in the camp.
"Taylor really enjoyed the Lea Maurer Stanford University swim camp. She told me that Coach Maurer was very involved in the camp and that she got in the water and showed the campers how to do things. She thought all the instructors were great and that they really worked with each swimmer on things they were weak at. She was able to tell me specific things she had improved at such as flip turns, breast stroke technique and streamlines. Her counselor was fantastic. The girls thought she was really nice and she really made them feel at ease and comfortable being away from home. Thanks to all the staff at the camp for such a successful session. We definitely will be attending next year."
Great camp!
"The Staff, Drills, dryland and strength training stations were great as well as the whole atmosphere of camp at Stanford."
Learn new skills.
"The drills and the explanation of each stroke was excellent. Good feedback as well."
Very helpful!
"I think it is a very helpful camp for skill improvement as a swimmer and self esteem as an individual."
Derek L.
Fun experience.
"Nike swim camp was a fun experience where u can meet new swimmers from around the world and to swim with them."












TaraStanford Overnight Camper
Favorite camp!
"Nike Sports Camp at Stanford was great i had been to another camp previous years but this camp was my favorite. The whole experience of going and getting to swim for Lea was great. When i asked her she didnt hesitate to look at my stokes and tell me what i could improve. Some of the drills we did were very different from any that i had ever done before. I definitely want to go back next yr."