Officials hired a former student as the new rowing head coach.
OCU alumnus Hadzo Habibovic was selected as the new coach for the men’s and women’s rowing teams. Habibovic was hired after Coach Thomas Daugherty was terminated from his position before the academic year began. Officials were unable to comment further about Daughtery’s termination.
Habibovic graduated with undergraduate and master’s degrees in accounting and rowed for the team from 2011-2015.
Habibovic was the coxswain, the steerman of the boat for the men’s team, and he also coxswained for the U.S. World University team in its first entrance in the games to win eight gold medals, according to OCUsports.com.
“Hadzo has great experience as a rower and coach and an intimate understanding of the mission of Oklahoma City University. I look forward to the very positive impact that I know he will have on our teams,” Athletic Director Jim Abbott said in an OCUsports.com article.
Habibovic also said he is interested in bringing change and improvement to the rowing teams.
“We are looking to revamp the OCU rowing team right from the start of this school year and continue to build up our speed and tradition in the coming years,” he said. “I am excited to see what we can build up here in OKC and show our speed on a national level.”
Senior rower Juliana Soper said she’s most of all looking forward to a new team mentality.
“Our goal is to create ‘a new standard’ for OCU rowing,” Soper said. “Creating a new standard will not only challenge us to take our training on the water and in the weight room to the next level, but it will also motivate us to excel in the classroom as we head into a new semester and grow in our academic endeavors.”
Habibovic said he’s excited to take over as head coach for the men’s and women’s teams.
“I rowed here for four years while I was in college and cannot wait to give back to the program that gave me so much,” he said.
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