“We are very fortunate to have Staciana as a member of our staff at the College of Charleston,” said Zimmerman, who enters his seventh season as mentor of the Cougars. “She brings to the program a wealth of experience at the most elite level of our sport.
“Her presence on the deck will be motivational to our current student-athletes and her experience and history will be a positive influence to help recruit future student-athletes to our program.”
Winfield, who’s currently ranked No. 1 in the United States and 4th in the world in the 100 breaststroke event, was a member of the U.S. Olympic Swim team that competed in the Sydney Games. She earned a gold medal for swimming the breaststroke leg of the women's 400-meter preliminary medley relay.
Winfield also holds gold and silver medals from the 1998 Goodwill Games, and earned another gold medal during the summer of 1999 in the 100-meter breastroke at the Pan Am Games.
Winfield, who is from Encinitas, Calif. and attended Cal-Berkeley, was a part of a Cal-Berkeley’s world-record-breaking 200-meter medley relay team (1:49.23) in the 2000 NCAAs. She was a four-year NCAA championship finalist (100 and 200 breaststroke).
Winfield was a junior national champion in 1997 and the California High School state champion in 1998 in both the 100- and 200-meter breastroke.
Winfield, whose maiden name is Stitts and was recently married to Brett Winfield, also worked at Nova Aquatics of California.