Coaching career has spanned over 28 years at Princeton with a combined record of 190-47.
Has amassed over 31 medals at Easterns and IRAs including three Eastern Sprints titles and three national champions.
Has coached 12 crews at the Senior World Championships or U-23 World Championships with six winning medals.
Assistant coach with U.S. National Team from 1999-2022 – Co-coached the men’s eight to gold at the 2002 U-23 World Championships and the 4+ to gold at the 2007 World Championships.
President of the STEM to Stern and the IRCA
Men’s Heavyweight Head Coach Since 2009 – 97-25 overall record with 12 IRA medals
First Varsity earned a bronze medal at 2023 IRA Championships, program’s first IRA medal since 2016
Team won the 2015, 2016 and 2024 Rowe Cup titles
Men’s Lightweight Head Coach from 2005-09 – Posted a 25-7 overall record
2009 crew won Easterns, the Ivy League title, a IRA crown and the Temple Cup at Henley
The 2009 crew’s victory at Henley was the first victory for Princeton Lightweights at Henley since 1973
Freshmen coach for the Princeton Heavyweight Team from 1997-2005 – 68-15 overall record
Freshmen boats captured 13 medals including 1998, 2003 Eastern Sprints
2003 crew won the IRA Championship and the Temple Cup at Henley, the first Henley win for Princeton since 1973
Jason Elefant ’15 finished his first season with Princeton heavyweight rowing in 2024.
In 2024, Princeton captured second place in the IRA Ten Eyck Standings which was the highest mark for the team since 2016 and the best score among all East Coast schools. The 2V earned a silver medal, its first medal at IRAs since 2017 and a five-spot jump from 2023. The 3V also collected a silver, its first medal since 2016.
The Tigers claimed the Rowe Cup at Eastern Sprints in 2024 for the first time since 2016 led by gold medals from the 2V and 3V.
2024 was one of the best seasons in program history as it’s the first time ever that Princeton’s 1V and 2V each went undefeated during the same season. The Tigers’ 1V has had a perfect regular season just five times (1881, 1997, 1999, 2006) in the 152-year history of the program.
Elefant spent the 2023 campaign with the Cal Bears who repeated as IRA National Champions after sweeping all four IRA events, collecting a perfect Ten Eyck score. He oversaw the Bears’ international recruiting and worked with the third and fourth varsity eights during the regular season. At IRAs, Elefant coached the Varsity Four to its first National Championship in the event since 2009.
Prior to that, Elefant had spent the previous five seasons with Syracuse including the last four as recruiting coordinator.
Elefant was responsible for recruiting all nine members of the 2022 Varsity Eight that was fifth in the 2022 IRA Championships. The 2V8+ and 3V8+ placed eighth and 10th respectively, making it the third time in the previous five years that Syracuse has placed three crews placed in the top 10 nationally.
Elefant was elevated to the post of recruiting coordinator following the completion of a successful first year at Syracuse, in which he coached the third varsity eight to an unbeaten record in the dual season and a #10 national ranking at the IRA Championship Regatta. With the 3V’s 10th place finish at the 2018 IRA, Syracuse placed three eights in the national top-10 for the first time since the regatta entered its new format in 2013.
• 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022, 2023 Ivy League Head Coach of the Year
• has led Princeton to every NCAA championship regatta, dating back to 1997
• Princeton has placed in the Top 5 at NCAAs 11 times
• the Princeton V8 has made 19 of 25 NCAA grand finals
• 251 dual race wins, the most for any Princeton coach with a single rowing team
• sent six alumni to either/both the 2012 and 2016 Olympics; two set W8+ record in ’13 World Cup
• 2006 US Rowing Woman Of The Year
• two-time National Coach of the Year
Two-time National Coach of the Year Lori Dauphiny will enter her 27th year as the head coach of women’s open crew for the 2024 season, and she has led the Tigers to an unprecedented era of success over her career. Under Dauphiny, Princeton has won two V8+ NCAA Championships and 12 Ivy League crowns, and the Tigers will enter the 2024 season having won 85 of its last 89 Ivy League dual races.
The first varsity finished third at the NCAA Rowing Championships behind Stanford and Washington in 2023. It was the third time ever that the boat has medaled at NCAAs in consecutive years (2009-10, 2005-06).
Princeton also finished third in the NCAA team standings, trailing Stanford (129) and Washington (120). It was the second straight season the Tigers were third, marking the first time in program history that the Tigers finished top three in consecutive seasons. Dauphiny‘s squad was the top Ivy school with Yale going fifth (110), Penn sixth (62) and Brown seventh (91).
The 2022 season saw Princeton place third at the NCAA team standings behind Texas and Stanford, the best mark since earning silver in 1997. The Varsity Four of Roopa Venkatraman, Hailey Mead, Catherine Garrett, Natasha Neitzell and Lauren Johnson won the national title (7:05.23) over Ohio State (7:06.46), Texas (7:07.18), Stanford (7:08.54), Washington (7:10.78) and Brown (7:19.22).
The gold medal marks the first V4 medal in program history at the NCAA Rowing Championships. Venkatraman, Mead, Garrett, Neitzell and Johnson join the likes of the 1997 2V, 2006 1V and 2011 1V as the only golds in team history at NCAAs.
Princeton’s 1V trailed by a second in the first 500m to Texas before the Longhorns pulled away from the entire field (6:10.73). The Tigers were neck and neck with Stanford, but the Cardinal secured second place (6:15.43). Princeton (6:17.70) kept California (6:18.78) at bay to secure the bronze. It was the 1V’s best finish since a silver in 2013.
Princeton ran in three races along with the Dad Vail Regatta in 2021 before the team finished 10th at the NCAA Championships.
The 2020 season was cancelled due to the coronavirus.
The success has been incredible this decade. Since a magical 2011 season, when Princeton went undefeated and won its second NCAA V8+ championship, the Tigers have won nine of the last 11 Ivy League championships.
During the 2019 season, Princeton went 12-0 in the regular season and went on to take down the Ivy League title for the fourth consecutive year. The Tigers finished seventh overall at the NCAA Championships. The squad registered 94 points, nine points out sixth and 11 points out of fifth place. They surpassed their rank from last season and secured the program’s 21st top-ten finish ever. In offseason, Dauphiny was named to CRCA Hall of Fame.
In 2018, Princeton went 12-1 in the regular season, including a perfect 7-0 in the Ivy League, and won a third straight Ivy League team title. The 1V returned to the NCAA grand final for the first time since 2013 and placed fifth overall, three spots higher than the boat’s seed.
While there isn’t much that Dauphiny hadn’t already accomplished in her career, she did experience some history during the 2014 season. Princeton repeated as Ivy champion for the first time in her career — she would do so again from 2016-2018 — and the Tigers did so in thrilling fashion against a Brown crew which was also ranked No. 1 nationally at the time.
That followed a 2013 season, when Princeton won the Ivy League championship, placed second in the V8 final at the NCAAs and placed third in the NCAA team competition.
The 2011 NCAA title was Princeton’s second in a six-year span. In 2006, she put together one of the greatest college crews in NCAA history with a squad that went undefeated and won the national championship by open water. Her crew in 2011 was equally dominant, going 13-0 in the regular season and then sweeping both postseason competitions.
Princeton’s performance at the 2011 EAWRC Championships (the final year before the Ivy League Sprints) was as impressive as any in recent history. Not only did the open women win their 11th Eastern title, but Princeton swept the 2V, V4 and 3V competitions as well. While the varsity eight placed first at the NCAA Championships, the team also added a fourth-place finish; in 16 NCAA Championship appearances, Princeton has been among the top four six times.
Dauphiny has also placed several recent rowers in major international competitions, including a historic showing in the 2012 London Games, when five Princeton alumni competed. Three earned medals in the W8+, including two-time Olympic gold medalist Caroline Lind ’06. Lind was also part of the U.S. gold medal-winning 8+ at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Both Andreanne Morin ’06 and Lauren Wilkinson ’11 earned silver medal with the Canadian 8+. Stone and Wilkinson returned to the 2016 Rio Games, and they were joined by Kate Bertko ’06, another member of the historic 2006 NCAA championship team.
The 2021 Tokyo Olympics had three alumni in Stone, Hannah Scott ’21 and Claire Collins ’19. Kate Bertko was an assistant for Team USA. A multiple-time Mid-Atlantic Coach of the Year, Dauphiny led the Tigers to a magical three-year run of 2004-06, when Princeton won an NCAA title and two Eastern championships and reached the grand final at the 2004 Royal Henley Regatta. Her squad advanced to the final of the Remenham Challenge, where it fell to the Thames Rowing Club and University of London. She returned to Henley in 2011 with her EAWRC/NCAA champion V8.
Dauphiny, who also worked with the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team, was named head coach of women’s crew at the conclusion of the 1996 season after leading the novice program to five straight Eastern Sprints titles. She was named EAWRC Novice Coach of the Year in 1993 and 1994 and Varsity Coach of the Year in 1997, 2004, 2006 and 2011. She was also named Woman of the Year by USRowing in 2006, an award given in recognition of outstanding contributions to women’s rowing. Prior to her arrival at Princeton, Dauphiny spent two years at Columbia coaching the women’s novice crew.
A 1985 graduate of Washington, she enjoyed an outstanding collegiate career that included a second-place finish at the 1984 National Collegiate Rowing Championships. She also was a three-time winner at the Pac-10 Conference championships, the West Coast’s equivalent of the Eastern Sprints. Dauphiny twice won gold medals for the U.S. at the Canadian Henley.
Dauphiny has spent summers since 1997 working with the U.S. national team and coached the pair and lightweight double at the 2004 Olympics.
Kalfaian is in her third season with Princeton in 2024.
The first varsity finished third at the NCAA Rowing Championships behind Stanford and Washington in 2023. It was the third time ever that the boat has medaled at NCAAs in consecutive years (2009-10, 2005-06).
Princeton also finished third in the NCAA team standings, trailing Stanford (129) and Washington (120). It was the second straight season the Tigers were third, marking the first time in program history that the Tigers finished top three in consecutive seasons. Head coach Lori Dauphiny‘s squad was the top Ivy school with Yale going fifth (110), Penn sixth (62) and Brown seventh (91).
The 2022 season saw Princeton place third at the NCAA team standings behind Texas and Stanford, the best mark since earning silver in 1997. The Varsity Four of Roopa Venkatraman, Hailey Mead, Catherine Garrett, Natasha Neitzell and Lauren Johnson won the national title (7:05.23) over Ohio State (7:06.46), Texas (7:07.18), Stanford (7:08.54), Washington (7:10.78) and Brown (7:19.22).
The gold medal marks the first V4 medal in program history at the NCAA Rowing Championships. Venkatraman, Mead, Garrett, Neitzell and Johnson join the likes of the 1997 2V, 2006 1V and 2011 1V as the only golds in team history at NCAAs.
Princeton’s 1V trailed by a second in the first 500m to Texas before the Longhorns pulled away from the entire field (6:10.73). The Tigers were neck and neck with Stanford, but the Cardinal secured second place (6:15.43). Princeton (6:17.70) kept California (6:18.78) at bay to secure the bronze. It was the 1V’s best finish since a silver in 2013.
Kalfaian ’17 was four-time medal winner at the Ivy League Championships during her time at Princeton. She helped the V4B win silver in 2014, the 3V8 earn bronze in 2015, the V4A secure silver in 2016 and bronze in 2017. She also led the V4A to the NCAA Grand Final as a senior.
Burke begins his first season with Princeton in 2022.
Burke comes from Old Dominion where he was the assistant coach/recruiting coordinator for the women’s rowing program since 2019.
Prior to Old Dominion, Burke spent six seasons at Cornell where he also had the same title for the men’s squad. While there, the assistant helped the second varsity to eighth place at the 2016 IRA National Championships. The 2015 and 2016 Eastern Sprints produced consecutive bronze medals for Cornell while Burke also coached two more top-five finishes at Easterns. Some other highlights at Cornell including coaching nine participants at the U-23 World Rowing Championships and one individual who was named to the 2020 U.S. national squad.
His previous stop before Cornell featured five years at Northeastern. In 2012, he was a part of the staff that led the team to a silver medal at Eastern Sprints and a bronze at IRAs. Burke recruited and coached five rowers that competed at the World Rowing Championships.
Other coaching stops include St. Joseph’s Collegiate Institute and the West Side Rowing Club. Burke attended Northeastern where he majored in history and minored in secondary education. As a member of the rowing team, he earned the Charlie Smith and Jack Grinold Boathouse Awards while helping the 2V to fourth place at Eastern Sprints, sixth place at IRAs and second at the Head of the Charles.
Matt Smith, a 2004 United States Olympian and a coach with strong collegiate and international experience, finished his eighth season with the Princeton heavyweights in 2024, and he has helped head coach Greg Hughes build Princeton into one of the deepest, most talented programs in the nation.
In 2024, Princeton captured second place in the IRA Ten Eyck Standings which was the highest mark for the team since 2016 and the best score among all East Coast schools. The 2V earned a silver medal, its first medal at IRAs since 2017 and a five-spot jump from 2023. The 3V also collected a silver, its first medal since 2016.
The Tigers claimed the Rowe Cup at Eastern Sprints in 2024 for the first time since 2016 led by gold medals from the 2V and 3V.
2024 was one of the best seasons in program history as it’s the first time ever that Princeton’s 1V and 2V each went undefeated during the same season. The Tigers’ 1V has had a perfect regular season just five times (1881, 1997, 1999, 2006) in the 152-year history of the program.
The 2023 season saw the first varsity lose to only Yale in the regular season before collecting its first medal at Eastern Sprints since 2016 with a silver medal, trailing only the Bulldogs.
Princeton’s first varsity earned a bronze medal at the 2023 IRA Championships, the boat’s first IRA medal since 2016. The Tigers also finished fourth in the Ten Eyck standings, a four-spot jump from 2022.
The 2022 season featured the varsity four of Eleanor Bauer, Greg Le Meur, Matthew Wagner, Emmett Infante and Sam Kleiner collecting gold at the IRA Championships. It was the first gold medal for Princeton at IRAs since the third varsity in 2016 and the first medal for the Tigers since the varsity four took bronze in 2019. Washington had won the previous 11 4+ titles. The Tigers collected five All-America honors following the 2022 campaign.
Princeton produced five All-Americans in 2021 after securing eighth place at the IRA Championships.
Smith was recently promoted to Associate Head Coach in the fall of 2019.
Lightweight Women
Womens Lightweight Head Coach
Paul Rassam
Men's Lightweight Assistant Coach
Chris Pedicone
Womens Lightweight Head Coach
Paul Rassam
Paul Rassam will be entering his 19th season as the head coach of the Princeton lightweight women during the spring of 2024.
Princeton followed up the 2022 magical season with a just as impressive 2023 campaign. The Tigers won three gold medals at Eastern Sprints before sweeping the IRA National Championships. The Tigers won the women’s lightweight team crown and the IRA Commissioner’s Cup for the second consecutive year. Rassam was later named IRA Coach of the Year for the 2023 season while the varsity eight also won the Women’s Lightweight Crew of the Year again. That boat has not lost to another lightweight boat since 2019.
The 2022 season was arguably the best campaign in program history as the varsity eight won the IRA Women’s Lightweight Crew of the Year while Rassam was named IRA Women’s Lightweight Coach of the Year after winning the IRA title.
Princeton opened 2022 with a 13.1-second victory over Georgetown before taking down Radcliffe by 4.3 seconds. The Tigers then headed on the road to defeat No. 3 Stanford before winning Eastern Sprints. Princeton went on to earn two gold medals at the Dad Vail Championships before winning the national championship at IRAs.
The Tigers won the varsity eight national championship for the first time since 2003, cruising to a dominating 26.3-second victory over Wisconsin in 2021.
The 2020 season was cancelled due to the coronavirus.
The 2019 season was a magical one for Princeton as it collected its first gold medal at Eastern Sprints since 2011. The Tigers would later go on to earn silver the IRA Championships, another milestone reached for the first time since 2011.
After spending the 2011 season ranked No. 1, Princeton ended Wisconsin’s long run at EAWRCs with a win in the grand final. Princeton also took silver at the IRA Championships, and it nearly knocked off reigning champion Stanford with a dramatic final push on Cooper River.
Prior to his time at Princeton, he served two years as the head women’s coach and two others as an assistant coach at George Mason from 2000-2004. During his two years as the head coach, he was able to triple the George Mason team size. His successful term was highlighted at the Dad Vail Regatta in 2004, when he led the Varsity 8s to the semifinal race for the first time in six years.
Rassam has also coached masters at Smichov Rowing Club, Prague and Capital Rowing Club in Washington, D.C.
A 1997 Princeton graduate with a degree in English literature, Rassam started his professional career as an account manager with Eurosports Marketing in Prague and Budapest. He rowed as a lightweight for three years and won two bronze medals at the Eastern Sprints (1991 and 1992) and one gold in 1995, when Princeton went on to win the Jope Cup.
Rassam believes in much more than rowing technique. He believes in nutrition, health, strength and fitness, both in his rowers and himself. He lives an athletic lifestyle and is an avid runner, and he has run in several marathons. He set a personal record of 2:48 in the 2008 Boston Marathon.
Pedicone begins his second season with Princeton in the spring of 2024.
Princeton followed up the 2022 magical season with a just as impressive 2023 campaign. The Tigers won three gold medals at Eastern Sprints before sweeping the IRA National Championships. The Tigers won the women’s lightweight team crown and the IRA Commissioner’s Cup for the second consecutive year.
Prior to arriving at Princeton, Pedicone was coaching at Drexel University where he spent one season helping the men’s rowing squad earn the Dad Vail Regatta team trophy, while also helping the women’s team to its best finish ever at the CAA Championships. During his year in Philadelphia, Pedicone also coached masters at Bachelors Barge Club.
Pedicone spent the 2020 – 2021 season coaching at Rutgers University during the most successful season in program history. For their efforts, Pedicone and the rest of the Rutgers staff were honored as the CRCA Regional Coaching Staff of the Year.
The Tigers’ assistant rowed as a heavyweight for the University of Pennsylvania, graduating in 1992. As a member of the freshman eight, Pedicone won gold at the Eastern Sprints, bronze at the IRA Championships, and made it to the quarterfinals at the Henley Royal Regatta. His sophomore year, Pedicone won silver at the Eastern Sprints as a member of the second varsity eight. As a junior, Pedicone rowed in Penn’s undefeated second varsity eight, taking gold at Sprints and IRAs, and going on to be the only American crew to win at the 1991 Henley Royal Regatta. He was team captain his senior year, helping the varsity eight win a bronze medal at the Eastern Sprints, gold (and a course record) at the IRA Championships, and bronze at the Collegiate National Championship.
After graduating from Penn, Pedicone rowed for the US Senior National Team in the lightweight eight at the World Rowing Championships in 1993 and 1994, finishing 7thand 5th respectively.
Pedicone is the founder of the Cure for IBD Foundation, a non-profit that raises funds for research toward new therapies and cures for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, with a special focus on pediatric IBD. He is an avid cyclist, and in 2015 raised funds by completing 280 miles over a 26-hour period in the Adirondack Mountains. Some of his other fundraising events have included completing an Ironman and the New York City Marathon.
