Head Coach: Robert McNamara

IDBF Hall of Fame Inductee

Rookie Season: 1985

Robert McNamara, MD is the most successful dragon boat coach in the USA. Teams coached or co-coached by him have won 166 IDBF World Championship medals including 29 gold medals at IDBF World Championships and 21 gold medals at IDBF Club Crew World Championships. He will start his 41st year of coaching in 2026.

His USA teams have reached the pinnacle of dragon boating twice, winning the IDBF Nations Cup in 2007 and 2011. The Nations Cup is the high point trophy awarded to the top Premier team in the world. Teams under his direction have recorded the world’s fastest times or rank in the top few in a number of events.

Coach McNamara's PDBA crews improved on their 2022 Sarasota CCWC medal haul (9 golds, 2 silver and 2 bronze). In 2024, PDBA won an incredible 17 medals (10 golds, 7 silvers) in the IDBF Ravenna CCWC, the largest IDBF event. This contingent of PDBA racers (59) filled 7 crews and topped the medal chart in 3 categories, finishing with the 2nd most golds and 2nd most silvers of any club program. PDBA's 3 2024 IDBF CCWC world championship titles included a successful defense of their 2022 B Mixed/20 and C Open/10 championship titles.

Bob began this sport as a paddler in the 1984 and 1985 dragon boat team that represented the US in the Hong Kong international races. He was then asked to coach in 1986 based on his prior success coaching college and high school rowing teams (two national championships). Since 1986 he has served as the head coach of the Philadelphia Dragon Boat Team winning numerous US national titles. Bob has taken PDBA members with no paddling experience from the novice level to the top of the podium at the World Championships.

An active paddler himself, Coach McNamara has raced in every IDBF World Championship to date and actively races outrigger and marathon canoe. In 2023, IDBF recognized his accomplishments and contributions by inducting him into the IDBF Hall of Fame. He served on the IDBF's Medical Science and Sports Commission.

All four of his children have won world championship medals for Team USA. Bob also serves as Chair of Emergency Medicine at Temple University Hospital.

Tommy Leonardi

Rookie Season: 1997

Tommy Leonardi first joined the PDBA in 1997. Having developed a following as a private paddling coach, in 2022 Tommy was engaged by the nearby Bucks County Dragon Boat Club as their head coach. In only two years his leadership propelled Bucks County to winning their first-ever World Championship and three other Worlds medals. By 2025, Bucks had also become five-time National Champions under his leadership.

While achieving this success at Bucks County, Tommy continued to paddle with the PDBA, winning multiple World Championships as a PDBA paddler. In 2026, his journey comes full circle as he returns home to coach the club where it all began for him.

Assistant Coaches

Peter McNamara

Rookie Season: 1985

Always a reliable partner for his brother Bob, Pete McNamara has been with the PDBA since the beginning, paddling, steering and coaching on both the Club Crew and Team USA level.

Head Coach: Robert McNamara

Tommy Leonardi

Assistant Coaches

Peter McNamara

Our Coaches