High school swimming: All in the family

SALT LAKE CITY — Literally and figuratively, Brian Sorensen is walking in his father's footsteps.

Last spring, Sorensen walked away from one of the state's elite swimming programs (Timpview) to become the head coach of one of its languishing ones (Cottonwood).

If you didn't know anything about Cottonwood High swimming or about the Sorensen family, that decision might not have made much sense to you.

But for Sorensen, it was an easy call to make for one simple reason — he wants to be just like his dad.

Sorensen's father, Clair, guided Cottonwood's swimming program to lofty heights during nearly three decades as its head coach before unexpectedly passing away in 1998. Just eight days before he passed away, Clair finished coaching his six children, as Brian, his youngest, raced in his final high school state meet.

Brian subsequently went on to have a successful swimming career at BYU and then became a coach at Timpview High, where he helped guide the T-Birds to two girls state titles in the past four years.

But throughout the past 11 years, Sorensen dreamed of following in his father's footsteps, and when the opportunity came up late last spring, Sorensen didn't hesitate to accept.

When offered, Brian quickly accepted a position to teach at the school his father taught at for years and to coach the swimming program his father spearheaded for 28 years. And at nearly the same time, he also accepted the same summer job that his father held for years and years.

Brian Sorensen knows he has a huge legacy to live up to, and that the challenges in front of him won't be easy to conquer.

But Sorensen is thrilled to have the chance to be like his dad.

"I still run into people — old swimmers and parents of swimmers — that just compliment how great of a coach he was and how great of a man he was," says Brian. "That's why it was kind of a no-brainer for me to come back. I got so much from this school and this program here. It was easy for me to come back and say, 'This is where I wanna be.' "

"To come back and honor him and the tradition and the strength of the program as it once was is really kind of something that I would love to do."

In February 1998, Clair Sorensen watched the youngest of his six children, Brian, complete a highly-successful high school swimming career for Cottonwood High by excelling at the state meet.