Robin Cambier, the most decorated player in Oregon men’s tennis history, transitioned to the newest chapter of his young and storied career by accepting an assistant coaching position for the Washington State Cougars’ women’s tennis program.
“To start a collegiate coaching career for a Pac-12 program is unheard of,” Cambier said. “It’s such a great experience.”
Cambier graduated from the Ducks men’s tennis team in 2014 after defeating four nationally ranked opponents including USC’s third-ranked Ray Sarmiento, in his senior season. He left the program as Oregon’s all-time record holder for career singles wins (90), career doubles wins (29), career singles and doubles wins (183), career doubles wins by a team (57), consecutive singles wins (15) and consecutive doubles wins. All four of Cambier’s singles seasons rank top-10 in school history, and he owns the top-three doubles seasons in University of Oregon history.
“After I got done playing, I’ve been wanting to pursue a coaching career,” Cambier said. “I want to have the same impact on other players as my coaches, like Nils and Jonas, had on me.”
Cambier spent three months prior to joining the Cougars as an assistant coach and assistant to director of college placement at the Weil Tennis Academy & College Preparatory School in Ojai, California. In addition to coaching players at Weil, he designed short and long-term plans for players and assisted players with NCAA eligibility, as well as recruitment by collegiate coaches.
“I am thrilled to add Robin to our coaching staff,” Washington State head coach Lisa Hart told WSUCougars.com. “With his charisma, positive outlook and tennis background, I am confident he will make a smooth transition to college coaching. I am eager for him to join us and get started.”
Upon accepting the position on Jan. 4, he arrived at the university on Jan. 5 and left for the Maui Inivitational tournament in Hawaii with the team on Jan. 7. The Cougars finished with a 29-6 match record, winning the three singles brackets. The team returned to Pullman on Monday and started preparation for its season opening matches against Seattle and Idaho on Jan. 22.
“It’s a quick turnaround, but its exciting,” Cambier said. “I’ve started to get to know the players’ personalities, game and how they respond to coaching.”
Cambier will take what he’s learned from Oregon head coach Nils Schyllander and associate head coach Jonas Piibor and apply it to the top-50 Division I Washington State program. Schyllander, who knew Cambier wanted to go into coaching, recommended him for the position at Washington State. Cambier bases his coaching style largely off Piibor, embracing the mentality of full-time commitment.
“There is no secret to greatness,” Cambier said. “Work hard on every single ball and be 100 percent committed, 24/7. If you combine hard work and talent you cannot be grounded.”
Cambier embodied this mantra throughout his collegiate playing career and reached levels of success never before seen at UO. In addition to his success on the court, Cambier earned Scholar-Athlete honors in three seasons and received the Pac-12 Tom Hansen Medal, awarded for performance and achievement in scholarship, athletics and leadership. Cambier served three years as the men’s tennis team representative for Oregon’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) as well as a three-month internship in the Affiliate Sales and Marketing department at Pac-12 Networks.
Follow Kenny Jacoby on Twitter @kennyjacoby