Lananna to Coach 2016 Olympic Team
07/15/15 | Track and Field
EUGENE, Ore. – Oregon Associate Athletic Director Vin Lananna was selected as the United States Head Men's Track and Field Coach for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, USA Track and Field announced Wednesday.
Lananna has enjoyed tremendous success as a coach and administrator. In a coaching career that spanned 35 years, Lananna led teams to 11 NCAA titles and 42 conference crowns, while nearly 60 NCAA individual titles were awarded to athletes under his guidance. Lananna was named to the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Hall of Fame in 2012.
“I am both humbled and honored to serve as head coach of the men's Olympic track and field team,” Lananna said. “It will be a pleasure to work with the athletes who comprise the world's No. 1 team. This is a very accomplished staff of men and women and collectively, we will continue the tradition of great coaches who have preceded us in this important role.”
Lananna served as an assistant coach for Team USA at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, and was head coach at the 2011 IAAF World Championships in Daegu, South Korea. He was an assistant coach at the 1999 IAAF World Championships, head coach for Team USA at the 1990 and 1996 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, and head junior team coach at the 1994 IAAF World Cross Country Championships.
As the president and visionary of TrackTown USA, Lananna has led the local organizing committee that secured the NCAA Outdoor Championships through 2021, as well as the 2014 IAAF World Junior Championships, 2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships and the 2021 IAAF World Championships. The 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials - Track & Field will be held in Eugene, following in the footsteps of 2012 and 2008.
Four-time Olympian and Southern Illinois head coach Connie Price-Smith will serve as the women's head coach.
Click here to see the full track and field coaching staff for the 2016 Olympics.
