John Brinkman is entering his 11th year as volunteer coach with the Old Dominion University tennis program.
During the 2008-2009 season Brinkman helped develop Aleksandr Seleznev to a place in the NCAA tournament in singles and doubles. Seleznev was also named CAA player of the year.
Brinkman was the head tennis coach at Maury high school from 1989-2000, where he led the squad to five regional championships.
He was the head men's and women's coach at Virginia Wesleyan College for five years, from 2003-2007, becoming the winningest head coach in school history. He led the men's squad to a 61-20 record and the women to a 64-16 mark and a first ever regional ranking. The 2007 squad finished 18-2 the best record in school history. In 2007, his No. 1 mens doubles team earned VWC's first NCAA birth in school history.
In 2006, John was named the Coach of the Year for the Old Dominion Athletic Conference.
Brinkman is also the former lead psychologist for Norfolk Public Schools.
He is recognized nationally and internationally for his work with suicide prevention.
He is married to Maggie Brinkman. They have three children, Brigid, Katie, who played tennis at UNC Wilmington and Peter who played tennis at Robert Morris. They also have four grandchildren, Anna, Lucy, William and Flynn.