James Washbish

Biography

James Washbish enters his fourth season as an assistant coach for the West Virginia University swimming and diving program after joining the staff in September 2023. In his role at WVU, Washbish oversees distance freestyle swimmers while assisting in all recruiting efforts. During the 2025-26 season, freshman Jake Salcedo led the Mountaineers, joining the top-10 in program history in the men’s 500-yard, 1000-yard and 1650-yard freestyle events. After just one season, Salcedo ranks in the top four in all those events, including second in the 1000 freestyle. Prior to West Virginia He comes to WVU with eight years of college coaching experience with stops at Kentucky and Ohio. Washbish recently served as the assistant swim coach for the Bobcats from 2021-23. In this role, he primarily coached the distance and middle-distance freestyle swimmers, created and organized recruiting visits and helped lead fundraising for the program. Prior to Ohio, Washbish was the head swim coach at Lafayette High School in Lexington, Kentucky. Washbish led the women's team to a third-place finish at the Kentucky High School Athletic Association (KHSAA) state meet in 2021. Washbish also spent four years at Kentucky as a volunteer assistant coach from 2015-19. In this position, he helped with team management, administrative procedures and other team needs. Washbish earned a B.S. in community and leadership development at Kentucky. He currently resides in Morgantown with his wife, Kathryn.