Chris Clark and Eric Hansen have much in common beyond the fact they're highly regarded coaches at the University of Wisconsin.

Both are among the longest-tenured in their positions at UW: Clark has overseen men's rowing since 1997, while Hansen has handled men's and women's swimming since 1999.

Both men have tremendous passion for the so-called "suffering sports" --such as crew, cross country, swimming and wrestling -- which are defined by the prolonged, intense exertion involved.

Both have elite coaching staffs that include Olympic medalists.

Both have produced Olympic medalists during their time at UW and have worked closely with U.S. national teams.

Clark and Hansen also have distinct handicaps within their programs, the kind that make their successes that much more impressive.

Clark has perhaps the premier facility in all of collegiate rowing -- Porter Boathouse, built at a cost of $8.56 million along the southern shore of Lake Mendota, was unveiled in 2005 -- but he has no scholarships to give and men's rowing isn't sanctioned by the NCAA.

Hansen, meanwhile, had scholarships valued at nearly $400,000 and spent nearly $50,000 on recruiting in 2006-07, but the 40-year-old UW Natatorium is probably the most outdated athletic facility on campus, and a practice area at the Southeast Recreational Facility can't accommodate competitive meets in part because it has no seating.

Clark and Hansen prefer to downplay their respective shortcomings.

"There can't be woe-is-me because it carries over (to the psyche of the team)," Clark said. "Then you're just giving guys an excuse.

"We don't focus on what we may not have going for us. Just focus on the positive."

Hansen said his time is better spent on the things he can control.

"I spend the majority of my time focusing on the things that we need to do to get better," he said. "The biggest part of that is continuing to recruit better and better athletes, and also continue to evolve as coaches.

"We don't spend a lot of time worrying about the what-ifs or what we don't have."

A record of success

These philosophies have served Clark and Hansen well in building three of the best Olympic-style programs at UW.

The men's rowers are ranked third in the latest USRowing college poll. The Badgers have gone to the West Coast and knocked off perennial powers Stanford and California. They also have gone to the East Coast and won the Cochrane and Jablonic Cups.

The big target for UW is the Intercollegiate Rowing Association national championships June 5 to 7.

"Certainly the obstacles placed before the program are immense," said John Jentz, the UW associate athletic director who oversees rowing. "But (Clark) has got a positive attitude. He knows what he has to work with and he just deals with that and moves forward."

Meanwhile, the UW men's and women's swimming and diving teams have each had multiple top-20 finishes in the NCAA meet under Hansen and have flirted with the goal he established early in his tenure: top-10 finishes in the same season.

"I think Eric sells our swim program," said Terry Gawlik, the UW associate athletic director who oversees the swimming programs. "It's Eric Hansen and what he's done."