Roland Thornqvist (born March 3, 1970) is a Swedish-born American college tennis coach and former college tennis player. Thornqvist is the current head coach of the Florida Gators women's tennis team of the University of Florida. He is best known for leading the Florida Gators to National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I national championships in 2003, 2011, 2012, and 2017.
 | |
| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Head coach |
| Team | University of Florida |
| Conference | Southeastern Conference |
| Record | 470–89 (.841) |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | March 3, 1970 Stockholm, Sweden |
| Playing career | |
| 1993–1996 | University of North Carolina |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 2002–current | University of Florida |
| 1999–2001 | University of North Carolina |
| 1997–1998 | University of Kansas |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 545–139 (.797) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| NCAA (2003, 2011, 2012, 2017) Southeastern Conference (2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016) Southeastern Conference Tournament (2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2016) | |
| Awards | |
| SEC Coach of the Year (2004, 2006, 2010, 2013, 2016) ITA National Coach of the Year (2011) | |
Tennis career | |
| Prize money | $ 2,775 |
| Singles | |
| Highest ranking | No. 303 (22 Nov 1993) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| US Open | Q1 (1994) |
| Doubles | |
| Highest ranking | No. 422 (11 Jul 1994) |
Early years
editThornqvist was born in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1970.
College career
editThornqvist attended the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, where he played for the North Carolina Tar Heels men's tennis team from 1990 to 1993. He was recognized as a three-time first-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) selection in 1991, 1992 and 1993, and a first-team All-American in 1993.[1] Thornqvist graduated from North Carolina with a bachelor's degree in economics in 1996.[1]
Coaching career
editThornqvist was the head coach of the Kansas Jayhawks women's tennis team at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas in 1997 and 1998. From 1999 to 2001, he was the head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels women's tennis team at his alma mater, the University of North Carolina.[1]
In 2002, Thornqvist became the head coach of the Florida Gators women's tennis program at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida. Since then, Thornqvist has been one of the top college tennis coaches in the country. His teams have qualified for the NCAA Tournament every year since he has been the head coach of the Gators. In 2003, 2011, 2012 and 2017, the Gators women's tennis team won the NCAA Division I National Championship.[1] Thornqvist's Gators have also finished second in the NCAA tournament in 2002 and 2010.[1]
The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) named Thornqvist as its national Coach of the Year in 2011.[2]
Coaching record
edit| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | - | Kansas Jayhawks (Big 12) (1997–1998) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Kansas | 15–14 | 10–3 | 2nd | NCAA Second Round | |||||||||
| 1998 | Kansas | 18–6 | 9–2 | 2nd | NCAA Round of 16 | |||||||||
| Kansas: | 33–20 | 19–5 | ||||||||||||
| UNC (Atlantic Coast Conference) (1999–2001) | ||||||||||||||
| 1999 | UNC | 16–9 | 3–5 | 4th | NCAA Second Round | |||||||||
| 2000 | UNC | 10–14 | 2–6 | NCAA First Round | ||||||||||
| 2001 | UNC | 16–7 | 6–2 | NCAA Second Round | ||||||||||
| UNC: | 42–30 | 11–13 | ||||||||||||
| Florida (Southeastern Conference) (2002–Present) | ||||||||||||||
| 2002 | Florida | 24–2 | 10–1 | 2nd | NCAA Runner-Up | |||||||||
| 2003 | Florida | 31–2 | 10–1 | 1st | NCAA Champions | |||||||||
| 2004 | Florida | 23–1 | 11–0 | 1st | NCAA Second Round | |||||||||
| 2005 | Florida | 22–3 | 9–2 | T-2nd | NCAA Semifinals | |||||||||
| 2006 | Florida | 25–2 | 11–0 | 1st | NCAA Semifinals | |||||||||
| 2007 | Florida | 24–3 | 10–1 | 1st | NCAA Quarterfinals | |||||||||
| 2008 | Florida | 24–3 | 11–0 | 1st | NCAA Semifinals | |||||||||
| 2009 | Florida | 16–10 | 7–4 | 4th | NCAA Round of 16 | |||||||||
| 2010 | Florida | 29–3 | 11–0 | 1st | NCAA Runner-Up | |||||||||
| 2011 | Florida | 31–1 | 11–0 | 1st | NCAA Champions | |||||||||
| 2012 | Florida | 27–1 | 11–0 | 1st | NCAA Champions | |||||||||
| 2013 | Florida | 26–3 | 12–1 | T-1st | NCAA Semifinals | |||||||||
| 2014 | Florida | 23–6 | 11–2 | T-2nd | NCAA Semifinals | |||||||||
| 2015 | Florida | 24–4 | 12–1 | 1st | NCAA Quarterfinals | |||||||||
| 2016 | Florida | 23–3 | 13–0 | 1st | NCAA Round of 16 | |||||||||
| 2017 | Florida | 29–3 | 11–2 | T-2nd | NCAA Champions | |||||||||
| 2018 | Florida | 19–9 | 11–2 | T-2nd | NCAA Second Round | |||||||||
| 2019 | Florida | 13–12 | 7–6 | T-6th | NCAA Second Round | |||||||||
| 2020 | Florida | 5–4 | 2–2 | T-4th | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 Pandemic | |||||||||
| 2021 | Florida | 13–8 | 10–3 | 2nd | NCAA Second Round | |||||||||
| 2022 | Florida | 21–7 | 10–3 | T-3rd | NCAA Round of 16 | |||||||||
| Florida: | 472–90 | 211–31 | ||||||||||||
| Total: | 547–140 | |||||||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
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See also
edit
References
edit- ^ a b c d e GatorZone.com, Women's Tennis coaching & Support Staff, Roland Thornqvist. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
- ^ "Roland Thornqvist Named Wilson/ITA National Coach of the Year," GatorZone.com (June 8, 2011). Retrieved June 16, 2011.
- ^ "2016-17 Women's Tennis Coaching Staff - Florida Gators". floridagators.com. Retrieved 2018-04-28.
- ^ "UF Names Roland Thornqvist Women's Tennis Coach". Florida Gators. Retrieved 2018-04-28.
- ^ "2017-18 Women's Tennis Schedule - Florida Gators". floridagators.com. Retrieved 2018-04-28.
External links
edit- Roland Thornqvist – Official biography at FloridaGators.com
- Roland Thornqvist at the Association of Tennis Professionals
- Roland Thornqvist at the International Tennis Federation