The Falfins coaching staff has over 100 years of combined experience. Our dedicated coaches are committed to helping our athletes reach their goals and stretch beyond them. As a coaching staff we believe in accountability and personal responsibility. As swimmers progress through our program, we encourage increasing ownership of their performance both in practice and competition. The coaches and athletes are very much a team, working together to produce not only successful swimmers, but successful human beings.
Tristan Cross Head Coach Silvers Coach Past General Chairman, Colorado Swimming Email: swimmbikeerunn@msn.com
Tristan Cross has been a life long swimmer and now age group coach who was born in Colorado. In 2004, Tristan was hired by the Falfins for his first coaching job. Coaching the Dynamos and the Blue group created a passion for coaching that turned a job into a lifelong career. After 3 1/2 years of coaching for Falfins, he was hired by CMA Swim Team to be their Head Age Group Coach. After 5 years with CMA and lots of success, Tristan joined the PEAK Swim Team. As the Head Age Group Coach at PEAK Swim Team, he helped grow the team from 10 swimmers to as high as 75 swimmers. After 3 1/2 fantastic years at PEAK, Tristan was rehired by Falfins. Through the past 14 years coaching in Colorado, Tristan has grown as a coach and learned from some of the best coaches in the sport. He is extremely excited to finally be back home at Falfins Swimming!
Currently, as the Head Coach of our team, Tristan’s goal is to help further the success of our athletes, our team and our LSC. Tristan is heavily involved in the elite level of Colorado Swimming. He has been selected to be a coach for Team Colorado eleven times, seven Mid-West All-Star Meets (2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 & 2018) and seven Western Zone Championship Meets (2011,2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017 & 2018). In the fall of 2016, Tristan was elected as the Age Group Vice-Chair for Colorado Swimming. And in the fall of 2018, he was re-elected to another two year term as Colorado Swimming Age Group Vice-Chair. In addition to coaching with Falfins Swimming, he oversaw all age group swimming for the state of Colorado and was the Head Coach of Team Colorado for the Midwest All Star meet, as well as the Western Zone Age Group Championships. In October 2019 and 2021 Coach Tristan was elected General Chairman of Colorado Swimming and in 2024 was appointed to the USA Swimming National LSC Development Committee. After working with the top coaches and swimmers in Colorado and the US, Tristan is ready to take Falfins Swimming to the next level!
Jorge Fernandez Senior Coach Email: jorgefernandez21@msn.com Jorge Fernandez was born and raised in Santiago, Chile. Moved to the United States in March of 1974. Jorge is an ASCA level 5 coach and has 33 years of coaching experience. He has been involved in athletics since the age of 10 mainly in cycling and swimming. By the mid 80’s Jorge started coaching while attending the University of Colorado Boulder. He continued to coach in the 90’s and joined Greenwood Tiger Sharks in 1992 as the head coach. As Greenwood masters coach and head coach at GTS Jorge was awarded Colorado Sr. Coach of the year in 1996, 2000, and 2003. During his time at GTS, Jorge coached Sectional Champions, Junior National Champions, Sr. National qualifiers, Olympic Trial Qualifiers, and one Olympic Triathlete at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games as well as putting athletes on the Jr. National Team. Jorge has also been assistant coach at Jr. Team Camp in San Diego, CA., and Zone Select Camps at the Olympic Training Center, Colorado Springs, CO. After being at GTS Jorge became head coach of the legendary Tacoma Swim Club where he had continued success. Due to his fathers health issues he decided to come back to Colorado and be at his side. Jorge continued to coach and joined Falfins Swim Team in September 2015 as the Lead Sr. Coach where he has developed athletes from the state level to the national level. Coach Jorge is a proud graduate of the University of Colorado Boulder with a (B.S. Kinesiology), and a (B.A. Spanish). When not coaching you can find Jorge on two wheels as a category 2 competitive masters road cyclist.
Jason Wederquist Blues Coach Email: jashowie@aol.com Jason Wederquist has been involved with Colorado Springs swimming for over 40 years as a swimmer, a coach, and a swim-parent. Jason swam competitively for 10 years on both year-round and summer-club programs and finished competing as a NCAA Division I swimmer. He started coaching as a local seasonal and high school swim coach where he worked with swimmers of varying abilities from developmental to state and regional competitors. After some time away from the water, Jason started working with the Falfins organization as a coach for the D2 and Sr. Prep (High School Performance) groups. Working now with the Blue group, Jason's primary focus is developing all swimmers to the best of their potential in a supportive and inclusive environment.
Laelle Brovold Dynamo 2 Coach Dynamites Coach Email:swim.laelle@gmail.com Laelle has been a part of the Falfins organization since 2015. She began as a swimmer, competing at the Junior National level and winning the 200 Butterfly at Senior Western Zones. At Rampart High School Laelle was an All-American, a member of the State Champion team, and an individual and relay state champion. She went on to compete at the Division 1 level for the University of Wyoming. Laelle previously worked for the Falfins as a lessons instructor and summer coach. We are excited to have her as our Dynamo 2 coach.
Kelly Wederquist Dynamo 1 Coach Adaptive Aquatics Coach Lessons and Summer Programming Email: kellywswim@gmail.com Kelly grew up swimming in Colorado as a summer club and high school swimmer. In college at University of Colorado, Boulder she taught lessons and coached a small club team. After earning a degree in Environmental, Population, and Organismic Biology, Kelly went to work for the United States Olympic Committee and was a high school assistant coach in her free time. After taking time away from the sport to start a family, Kelly became involved with swimming again with PEAK swim team as a parent and the Swim Lessons Director. Kelly's start with Falfins in 2015 was with the lessons program as a teacher. She now coordinates the Falfins lessons program and coaches the Dynamite, Dynamo1, Adaptive and Summer groups. Kelly's emphasis as a coach is technique, team skills, and team building. In 2024, Coach Kelly was named the Disability Swimming Chair for Colorado Swimming.
Claire Strong Coach Summer Programs Email: clhs2005@hotmail.com Claire is from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. She moved to Colorado Springs in the spring of 2013. Claire has a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of South Dakota in Physical Education, with minors in Adaptive Physical Education, Health, and Coaching: swimming, track & field, and cross country. Claire also has a Master’s degree in Technology for Teaching and Training. Claire has been coaching with the Falfins swim team since 2013. As a Falfin she has coached year-round swimmers, summer teams, taught swim lessons, and was the on-site supervisor for the swim lesson program for several seasons. She was instrumental in building the team's summer programming, including the swim school and the summer swim team. She has been selected twice to coach for team Colorado at the Midwest All-Star meet in Omaha, Nebraska in 2017 and 2018 and as a coach for Team Colorado at the 2017 Western Zones in Roseville, California. Claire is currently spending more time with her young family and filling in where needed.
