Vidale Tabbed as Water Polo Head Coach
5/21/2026 11:00:00 AM | Water Polo
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- University of Michigan Donald R. Shepherd Director of Athletics Warde Manuel announced the hiring of Chris Vidale as the Michigan water polo head coach on Thursday (May 21).
"We are thrilled to welcome Chris as the new water polo coach for our program," said Manuel. "His leadership, vision and commitment to developing student-athletes in and out of the pool make Chris an outstanding fit for our team. We're excited for the energy, passion, and championship mindset that he will bring to Ann Arbor as we continue building a strong future for our water polo program."
"I am honored and excited to be named the head coach of the Michigan water polo program," Vidale said. "Michigan represents excellence at the highest level, and I'm grateful for the opportunity to lead and to serve these young women. My vision is to build a sustainable future that is rooted in connection, trust and daily growth. When people feel valued, connected and united in purpose, everything else starts to follow. Create the right culture, invest in our people and eventually the scoreboard takes care of itself. I'm excited to get to work."
Vidale comes to Ann Arbor after spending the last 10 seasons as the women's head coach at Marist, compiling a 194-117 record with eight 20-win seasons. He led the Red Foxes to the 2021 MAAC championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament, picking up a 9-8 first-round win over Salem to advance to the quarterfinals for the first time in program history.
This past season, Vidale was named the MAAC Coach of the Year for the first time as the Red Foxes went 8-0 in conference action and made a run to the MAAC championship match. Ines Sanchez was named the MAAC Goalkeeper of the Year and the Red Foxes put a league-best three players on the All-MAAC first team.Â
Throughout his 10 seasons at Marist, he coached his players to 17 Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches Women's Division I All-America honorable mention citations.Â
Prior to coaching at Marist, Vidale coached at Greenwich High School from 2014-16 and led the team to the 2015 Connecticut state championship. He also serves as the New York Athletic Club head coach and general manager, coaching countless current and former Olympians.
He has been a mainstay on the coaching staff of the USA water polo cadet team, helping them claim bronze at the 2024 PanAm Aquatics U19 Water Polo Championships in El Salvador. He is helping the team prepare for the upcoming world championships in Croatia later this summer.
Vidale began his coaching career at his alma mater, coaching on both the women's staff (2009-16) and men's staff (2009-14) at Iona.Â
Vidale played collegiately at Iona (2003-07), totaling 30 goals, eight assists, 56 steals and 38 drawn kickouts in 67 games played. He won a pair of bronze medals with the Trinidad and Tobago National Team, coming at the 2009 CCCAN Games and at the 2009 FINA men's water polo trophy event.
He and his wife, Betsey, have two children --Â Frankie (10) and Max (7). Betsey (Armstrong) is an Olympic gold medalist (2012) and was inducted into the Michigan Athletics Hall of Honor in 2018 as the first water polo athlete honored following her illustrious collegiate career in Ann Arbor.
