University of Pennsylvania Athletics

Jason "J.R." Read began rowing at The Hun School of Princeton in the 8th grade as a coxswain, and the sport continues to shape his life. The 2018-19 season will be Read's second as an assistant coach with the Penn men's heavyweight crew.  
 
While at Hun, Read made the first of what would be a career that spanned 16 years of elite rowing as a member of 13 National teams, including two Olympics as an athlete, and one as a coach.  
 
Read was a member of the American Men's Eight which won gold and set a world record at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens Greece.
 
At the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Read rowed for Penn Hall of Fame rowing alumni Sean Colgan and John Chatzky and won a gold medal in the Men's Eight. On this trip, Read was selected by team members to be the flag bearer and lead the U.S. delegation of athletes into Opening Ceremonies.    
 
Like fellow Quaker Rowing Coach Brendan Cunningham, Read graduated from Temple University in 2003 (Economics and Finance). An All-American at Temple, Read was coached by Philadelphia rowing legend, Dr. Gavin White. Read is the only person in history to stroke a varsity eight at the Dad Vail Regatta to four gold medals from the stroke seat. During his undergraduate summers, Read won multiple medals at the U-23 World Championships while training at the USRowing Olympic Training Center (PTC) at Princeton University under U.S. National team coach, Mike Teti. Read was full-time PTC athlete from 2000 through 2012.  
 
Read has been inducted into the Halls of Fame at The Hun School of Princeton, Temple University, National Rowing Foundation and the New York Athletic Club. He is the only person in history to be honored as the USRowing “Man of the Year” twice and be named a finalist twice for the AAU’s James E. Sullivan Award which honors America's top amateur athlete.  
 
Read was the head coach of women's rowing at Temple University in 2011 and 2012; and was an assistant for the Bishop Eustace girls rowing team for three seasons winning multiple Stotesbury and Scholastic national medals. Additionally, Read has worked with the U.S. Naval Academy women's rowing team.   
 
Read holds a Masters of Science from Saint Joseph's University and was a Butler College Fellow at Princeton University.