"It is a high honor to represent your country as an athlete or coach," said Werner. "Being a part of the upper level of competition in swimming and diving gives you the opportunity to surround yourself with the best. You have the privilege to see how the athletes prepare for competition while educating yourself from their performance. This teaches me how to train my swimmers to compete as if they were competing on the national level".

Werner's responsibilities for the U.S. Pan-Pacific team includes coaching and team liaison for travel, lodging and practice.

"Being elected as a coach of the U.S. Pan-Pacific Team is a distinctive honor for Ohio Swimming and Diving and Ohio University. This lets me know that the teams efforts and accomplishments have not gone unnoticed."