Bobby Guntoro, who was named head coach on July 23, 2020, returns to his alma mater following eight seasons on the staff at NC State, including the last three as the Wolfpack’s Associate Head Coach. He arrived in Raleigh as a graduate assistant and after two seasons, was elevated to assistant coach.
“We’re excited to have Bobby return to UNCW,” said Bass. “He was a great ambassador for our program and university when he was a student-athlete and he’s helped NC State’s programs to great heights during his time there.”
Guntoro becomes just the third head coach in the program’s 42-year history and the first UNCW graduate to take the reins.
At NC State, Guntoro served on both the women’s and men’s coaching staffs and helped both teams record ACC championships and NCAA top-10 finishes. He worked primarily with the sprint and middle distance groups daily and was instrumental in recruiting.
Guntoro helped produce a pair NCAA champion relays at the 2018 NCAA Championships and both relay units set NCAA records. The 800 Free Relay clocked a time of 6:05.31, while the 400 Free Relay posted a record time of 2:44.75.
Individually, Andreas Vazaios was the NCAA champion in the 200 Butterfly at the 2018 and 2019 NCAA Championships.
The Wolfpack men have finished in the top-10 at the NCAA Championships every season since 2015 and have claimed the last six ACC titles.
On the women’s side, Guntoro helped the program to the 2017 ACC title, its first championship since 1980. NCSU added another crown in 2019 and finished seventh at the NCAA Championships for the second time in three seasons.
At the 2020 ACC Championships, the women’s 200 Free Relay set an ACC record with a time of 1:26.15.
Guntoro is a graduate of UNCW and earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting in 2011. He set the program record in the 100 Butterfly and swam on several record-breaking relays. UNCW won four Colonial Athletic Association championships during his career and added a fifth consecutive title in 2012 when Guntoro served as a volunteer assistant on the coaching staff.
Guntoro has extensive experience on the international front. A native of Jakarta, Indonesia, he represented the country on the international level from 2003-11.
Guntoro earned a Master of Arts Degree in Liberal Studies with a concentration on Sport and Youth Development at NC State in 2015.
