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Former Track Coach Mark Guthrie Selected to Hall of Fame
For Immediate Release: Thursday, August 14, 2008
New Orleans, La. - Former University of Wisconsin-La Crosse track & field coach Mark Guthrie will be inducted into the 2008 Class of the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Hall of Fame along with seven others. Guthrie took over as head coach at UW-La Crosse in 1985 and served at the helm of the program for 19 years. He joined the coaching staff at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2007.
"It's really a tremendous and humbling honor," Guthrie said of his induction. "You don't start out in this business thinking about halls of fame and that sort of thing, but to be honored by your peers like this is certainly a humbling experience," he added.
Joining Guthrie in the USTFCCCA Hall of Fame Class of 2008 are Charlie Craig (California State University-Bakersfield), Kim Duyst (California State University-Stanislaus), Dean Hayes (Middle Tennessee State University), Dave Murray (University of Arizona), Gary Pepin (University of Nebraska), Peter Tegen (Stanford University), and Alex Wilson (University of Notre Dame). The 2008 Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony is scheduled for December 17, 2008 at the J.W. Marriott Desert Ridge Resort and Spa in Phoenix, Arizona – site of the 2008 USTFCCCA Convention.
Guthrie, whose coaching career began right out of college in 1975, has won championships at every major level in cross country/track and field. His first job was at Fennimore (Wisc.) High School where he was the boys’ head cross country and track & field coach, guiding the team to three straight cross country state championships. After Fennimore, he would move to Naperville (Ill.) High School before taking his first job at the college ranks with UW-La Crosse in 1985.
He spent 19 years at UW-La Crosse and during that time frame won an unprecedented 22 Division III National Titles (12 indoor/10 outdoor). In addition to his 22 titles, his teams swept both the indoor and outdoor titles in the same season 10 times.
“A lot of credit has to go to those I've worked with and coached throughout my career. Nothing that I've accomplished would have happened if it weren't for the assistant coaches, administrators and student-athletes I've had the opportunity to work with. I also have to give a lot of credit to all the parents who trusted their student-athletes to me and helped support them throughout their careers,” Guthrie said.
Guthrie’s peers named him the United States Track Coaches Association’s (now USTFCCCA) Division III National Coach of the Year eight times during his career, and he was named a Division III Regional Coach of the Year 11 times.
Under his direction, Guthrie guided the Eagles to 34 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) titles, winning both the indoor and outdoor conference titles in his final year at UW-La Crosse. Guthrie won 16 WIAC Indoor and Outdoor Coach of the Year honors during his 19-year stint.
In 1997 he was selected first vice-president of the USTCA (now USTFCCCA) Division III Track & Field Coaches and served as the Division III Track and Field president from 2000 to 2004. In 2004 he was awarded United States Sports Academy’s Distinguished Service Award.
Guthrie has coached five Olympic Trials participants with the most notable being 2004 Olympic gold medalist Andrew Rock. Rock was a 17-time NCAA Division III All-American at UW-La Crosse.
For more information on the inductees in this year's USTFCCCA Hall of Fame class, see www.ustfccca.org.
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