University of Connecticut Athletics
UConn Women’s Rowing Head Coach Jennifer Sanford Announces Retirement
4/3/2026 10:09:00 AM | Women's Rowing
STORRS, Conn. – After 29 years of leading the University of Connecticut women's rowing program, Head Coach Jennifer Sanford has announced her retirement at the conclusion of the 2025-26 rowing season.
"Announcing my retirement is bittersweet as I look back at my almost 29 years at UConn," said Sanford. "I gave everything I had to the program and am so proud of what was accomplished both on and off the water. The student-athletes, coaches, and UConn community shaped me into the person I am today. I will be forever grateful that Lew Perkins, Jeff Hathaway, and Pat Babcock took a chance on a young 25-year-old to be the first Varsity Rowing Coach back in 1997, when I first began Bleeding Blue. Raising my three boys in the UConn Athletics family brought so much joy to our household, whether it was making signs for the football team for the Husky Walk, or watching a soccer game with enthusiasm end in a 0-0 tie. I would like to thank David Benedict and Jessica Chrabaszcz for allowing me the opportunity to provide support to the rowing team as they transition into a new era with a new coach and new amazing facilities. The best is yet to come for UConn Rowing. I will miss the morning sunrises on the water and the relationships with the incredibly smart and talented student-athletes the most, but will be cheering loudly from shore watching the Huskies cross the line first."
At the conclusion of the season, Coach Sanford will continue to serve as an ambassador for the university and the athletic department through 2027 as an advisor for the rowing program. In this role she will help guide the completion of the fieldhouse and boathouse projects and provide historical perspective and institutional knowledge related to the rowing program.
"I'd like to congratulate Jen on almost thirty years of service to UConn in her head coaching position," said Director of Athletics, David Benedict. "I look forward to her continued involvement with the program as she supports the opening of the new boathouse, and indoor rowing facility in the spring of 2027."
Sanford was appointed the inaugural head coach of the women's rowing program when it first achieved varsity status in 1997. Over nearly three decades of exemplary leadership, Sanford has created an environment for success both on and off the water for her student-athletes, while building a long-standing legacy of community engagement, and academic integrity.
Sanford, a 1993 graduate of Syracuse University, comes from a distinguished family legacy in collegiate rowing. Her father, Bill Sanford led the men's crew program at Syracuse for 37 years as Head Coach. In recognition of his sustained service and legacy, Syracuse honored him in 2019 by naming the indoor rowing facility the William E. Sanford & Family Rowing Performance Center.
Carrying on her family's coaching tradition, Sanford began coaching at the age of 16, working with local youth programs. After graduating from Syracuse, she served as the Head Coach for the Liverpool High School Women's Crew team in New York before becoming the novice women's coach at the University of Pennsylvania. Sanford also coached the United States Junior National Development Team prior to her tenure at UConn.
A national search to identify Sanford's successor will begin at the conclusion of the spring season.
