Emma Fisher, Men’s Head Coach
We are excited to welcome Coach Emma as the new Head Coach for the Boys team. She brings several years of coaching experience at both the high school (Walter Johnson High School) and collegiate levels (Stetson University). Emma has a strong focus on athlete development, teamwork, and competitive success, as well as firsthand knowledge of the college recruitment process — both as a Division I collegiate rower and as a college recruiter. Emma began rowing as a freshman at Walter Johnson and continued all four years until graduating in 2011. She then rowed Division I at La Salle University, where she further honed her skills and passion for the sport. After earning her teaching degree, she returned to Maryland as a special education elementary school teacher and an assistant girls’ coach at WJ Crew Club. From 2015 to 2020, she coached the novice girls, guiding them through their first experiences with rowing. In 2020, Emma moved to Florida and joined the coaching staff at Stetson University. She began with the JV women’s boat before transitioning to assist with the men’s team, where she coached for two seasons. She also worked with Stetson’s summer rowing camp, helping prospective athletes build skills and confidence on the water. Over the years, she has both rowed for gold and coached gold-medal crews — and she’s not sure which has been the prouder moment.
On a personal note, Emma got married in 2021 and now shares her life with two Labrador retrievers — one is a big fan of the water, while the other prefers to keep his paws dry. Bartley, her yellow lab, is especially excited to be back on the launch with her!
Chris Graves, Women’s Head Coach
Coach Chris has been part of Walter Johnson Crew Club since 2014 and has served as the Women’s Head Coach since 2016. With more than 25 years of coaching experience, beginning in 1999, Chris has dedicated his career to developing high school rowers, building competitive programs, and helping athletes reach their potential both on and off the water.
Since taking over the WJ women’s program, Chris has helped establish Walter Johnson as a consistent competitor at the regional and national levels. Under his leadership, the WJ women have won the team points trophy in the Girls Senior Four category three consecutive years, while numerous crews have earned medals and advanced to championship finals. WJ crews have qualified for the USRowing Mid-Atlantic Youth Championships and advanced to the USRowing Youth National Championships. The program has also expanded its racing opportunities to include the Canadian Secondary Schools Rowing Association (CSSRA) Championships, where WJ crews have competed and advanced to finals.
Chris also takes great pride in the development of WJ athletes beyond high school. Rowers he has coached and mentored have continued their careers at the collegiate level in Division I, Division II, Division III, and club rowing programs. Former athletes have also gone on to become coaches themselves, including coaching at the collegiate level.
Before joining Walter Johnson, Chris served as Head Coach at B-CC Crew, where he helped build the team into a highly competitive program at the regional and national levels. During his tenure, his crews earned seven regional and city team championships, two Stotesbury Cup titles, and numerous medals and finals appearances at the Stotesbury Cup and SRAA National Championships. The Washington Post recognized Chris with multiple All-Met honors, including naming him Boys Rowing Coach of the Year in 2001 and Girls Rowing Coach of the Year in 2009.
Chris is a graduate of Towson University, where he competed as a member of the university’s club rowing team. He competed for the Puerto Rican National Team in 1998 and has rowed for several clubs, including Baltimore Rowing Club and Capital Rowing Club. He has also coached at Thompson Boat Center.
A USRowing Level III certified coach, Chris currently serves on the Stotesbury Cup Regatta Coaches Committee and previously served on the USRowing Mid-Atlantic Coaches Board and participated in USRowing’s coaching mentorship program.
Chris believes that success in rowing is about more than race results. His coaching philosophy emphasizes hard work, accountability, teamwork, resilience, and giving athletes opportunities to challenge themselves and grow. His goal is not only to build fast boats, but to help young athletes develop confidence, leadership, and a lasting connection to the sport.
Outside of rowing, Chris enjoys soccer, photography, running, Legos, and spending time with his family and children.
We are pleased to welcome the following assistant coaches to our team:
Coach Zoe Warren, Assistant Women’s Coach
Coach Zoe coxed for Walter Johnson from 2017 to 2021 and then briefly coxed at the University of Washington in Seattle. There, she majored in Environmental Studies and graduated in late 2024. Zoe is excited to return to WJ and bring her extensive knowledge to help both coxswains and rowers move boats safely and efficiently. Hopefully, some medals will be earned along the way!
Sydney Gibbons, Assistant Women’s Coach
Coach Sydney comes to our team as an assistant coach supporting the women’s team. We are doubly fortunate in that she rowed for WJ Rowing (Class of 2020) and went on to row at University of Dayton. She graduated from University of Dayton with a BS in Health Sciences and is a Certified Nursing Assistant.
Robert Karlen, Assistant Men’s Coach
Coach Robert continues to provide support to the team on Saturdays, and we are excited for his ongoing contributions to our rowers. Robert graduated WJ in 2014 after helping to qualify the men’s Varsity 4+ to SRAA Nationals for 3 years in a row and being elected co-captain his senior year. After WJ, he attended the University of Washington, and continued rowing there. At Washington, he was a member of the second varsity eight that went undefeated in 2017-18, including winning PAC12 and National Championship titles. He was also selected as a member of the Washington eight that went to the Henley Royal Regatta in July 2018, held in Henley-on-Thames, England, to race in the Temple Challenge Cup, and won the event in a record setting time of 5 minutes and 58 seconds over the 2,112 meter race course.
Coach Rebecca, Assistant Men’s Coach
Coach Rebecca is looking forward to returning as an assistant coach for the boys. She is a former Bethesda Chevy Chase rower (Class of 2021), and continued rowing at Marist University. She graduated from Marist University with a major in Psychology and a minor in Biology. In addition to coaching at WJ, Rebecca is a Physical Therapy Technician in an outpatient and sports medicine clinic.
Coach Jeremiah Fan, Assistant Men’s Coach
Coach Jeremiah returns as a novice coach supporting the men’s team. During his time on WJ Crew, Jeremiah broke the world record for most meters rowed in 24 hours on a rowing machine in the individual mens’s under 19 lightweight category, achieving 270,464m. He graduated from WJHS in the Class of 2022 and has been a member of the coaching staff since October 2022. After transferring from Montgomery College, he obtained his Bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering in May of 2026.
“I am very excited to be coaching for WJ crew since my time on the team was personally transformative. Rowing was one of the first things I truly took ownership of and committed myself to, and the dedication of the WJ coaching staff made that growth possible even through COVID (I was a sophmore-junior during the pandemic). As a coach, I want to create an environment where athletes can constantly grow and understand what they are doing. I hope that I can help facilitate the moment where rowing ‘clicks’ for them and they become motivated to take things into their own hands. Rowing and coaching have been the source of some of the proudest moments of my life!”
Coach Ryan Kavanaugh, Assistant Men’s Coach
Coach Ryan returns as part of the Saturday WJ coaching team. Ryan began rowing at McQuaid Jesuit High School in Rochester, NY. Highlights include multiple medals in lightweight 8 and 4 at the state and local level. He was recruited to and rowed at Columbia on the lightweight team. He was part of the first varsity lightweight 8 at the Head of the Charles Regatta in 2008 and 2009. He graduated from Columbia in 2011 with a BA in Neuroscience. Before joining WJ as an assistant coach in 2023, Ryan was an assistant coach at his former high school and later was an assistant men’s team coach for Row Boston through the Coaches Across America Americorp program.
“As a coach for WJ Crew, I want to help set higher standards throughout the program to help the rowers reach as much of their potential as possible. This includes erg tests, technique, and preparation for practice. By raising standards in these areas, I hope it translates to improved overall boat speed.”
Coach Dylan Dembo, Assistant Men’s Coach
Coach Dylan s a former WJ varsity crew captain who returns as an assistant coach for the men’s team. He has been involved with the TIC Summer Camp, a technology and athletics camp, in Bethesda, MD since 2021, developing curricula to be used by counselors across seven computer programming and multimedia technology programs as well as providing education and supervision to counselors in training as the Leadership Training Director for the camp. He is currently an undergraduate student at the University of Maryland, College Park pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science and Policy.
We are pleased to announce that the WJ Crew Club is continuing its Middle School program under the direction of Men’s Head Coach Emma Fisher.
Discover the sport of rowing with WJ Crew Club! Under the direction of the men’s and women’s assistant coaches, students will take part in an instructional and training program that emphasizes rowing fundamentals, physical fitness, and teamwork. The program is designed to prepare young athletes for future opportunities in competitive rowing while fostering camaraderie, resilience, and discipline. No prior rowing experience is necessary—just a willingness to learn and have fun on the water! The program is open to current 7th and 8th graders at both North Bethesda and Tilden Middle Schools.
