John Graves - Women's Rowing Coach - Dartmouth College Athletics

John Graves

Title:
The Elizabeth C. McNabb Head Coach of Women’s Rowing
Email:
john.h.graves@dartmouth.edu
Phone:
513-259-8840

John Graves is the Elizabeth C. McNabb Head Coach of Dartmouth College Women’s Rowing and has led one of the nation’s fastest-rising collegiate rowing programs since his appointment in 2023. Through a commitment to high performance training, technical excellence, and the love of the process, Graves has positioned Dartmouth among the country’s emerging national programs.

In just three seasons, Graves has guided Dartmouth through one of the most successful stretches in program history. In 2025, the Big Green earned the program’s first NCAA Championship appearance since 2011 and finished 16th nationally. Dartmouth concluded both the 2025 and 2026 seasons ranked among the nation’s Top 25 programs, reflecting the program’s sustained rise on the national stage.

Although Dartmouth narrowly missed earning a second consecutive NCAA Championship berth in 2026, the season represented another significant step forward for the program. The Big Green finished second overall in Team Points at the Women’s Eastern Sprints, advanced every boat to the Grand Finals at the Ivy League Championships, and placed fourth overall at the Ivy League Championships—the highest team finish of the NCAA era. This performance capped one of the most successful team wide seasons in Dartmouth Women’s Rowing history and reinforced Dartmouth’s emergence as one of the nation’s rising rowing programs.

Before becoming Dartmouth’s head coach, Graves gained experience under two of the most respected coaches in collegiate rowing. He served as a volunteer coach with the University of Texas women’s rowing program under legendary head coach Dave O’Neill during the Longhorns’ historic 2021 NCAA Championship season, when Texas captured the first national championship in program history. He then joined Dartmouth’s heavyweight men’s rowing staff as an assistant coach and learned under 2004 Olympic Champion and 2-time National Coach of the Year Wyatt Allen from 2021-23.

Graves also brings extensive international experience as both an athlete and coach. Graves represented the US at World Championships in the 1x, 2x, and 4x; highlighted by a bronze medal in the M4x at the 2014 World Cup in Lucerne, SUI. Graves has also enjoyed success at the world’s largest regatta—the Head of the Charles. He won five consecutive medals in the Championship 1x from 2015-2019 and also won gold in the Championship 8+ as a member of the Great Sculling 8+ in 2014– an all star boat comprised of the fastest scullers in the world. He also went on to win Olympic Trials in 2016 and 2020 in the M4x and M1x respectively.

As a coach, Graves has coached on the National Team level three times, highlighted by serving as the Lead Coach of the United States Under-23 Men’s Eight in 2023. He led the crew to a silver medal at the World Rowing Under-23 Championships in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.

Known for blending evidence-based training with technical precision and an athlete-centered coaching philosophy, Graves is recognized for an unwavering commitment to empowering student athletes. His programs emphasize long-term development, resiliency, and building self-driven competitors capable of performing their best under pressure on and off the water.

At Dartmouth, Graves is building a program with the long-term vision of establishing the Big Green as a perennial contender for Ivy League and NCAA championships while developing exceptional student-athletes who excel as competitors, scholars, and leaders.