Piedmont College Head Cross Country and Track & Field Coach Jeff Jenkins has announced the addition of former American Record Holder Chris Solinsky to the 2016 Piedmont Cross Country Camps.
Solinsky will serve as the keynote guest speaker at both sessions of this year’s camp and will also be involved in some of the camp’s daily activities.
“Beyond being a world class athlete, Chris is a great ambassador for the sport. He is the type of role model that coaches want their athletes to follow,” Jenkins said. “There is no doubt that Chris Solinsky is one of the best distance runners to ever wear ‘USA’ across their chest, but it’s his passion for the sport, his determination to overcome hardships and his desire to instill those principles in young people that makes us so excited to be bringing him to Piedmont this summer.”
Chris Solinsky just recently retired with the announcement coming in April following an illustrious distance career. Solinsky set the American record becoming the first non-African man to break 27 minutes in the 10,000 meters with that performance coming in his debut at the distance at the 2010 Payton Jordan Invitational at Stanford University. He is currently the second fastest American man at 5,000 meters and 10,000 meters with personal bests of 12:55.53 and 26:59.60 respectively.
Solinsky competed professionally for eight years and was sponsored by Nike. He was a member of Team USA at the 2009 World Outdoor Championships, finishing 12th in the 5,000m, and was runner-up in the event at the 2009 U.S. Championships. Solinsky also qualified for the 2011 World Championships in the 5,000m, but had to withdraw due to hamstring avulsion only weeks before. Collegiately, Solinsky ran for the Wisconsin Badgers helping the team win the NCAA Cross Country Championships in 2005 and the NCAA Indoor Championships in 2007. He also was a 14-time All-American and won five NCAA Championships including three indoor individual championships (2005 and 2006 3,000m; 2007 5,000m) and two outdoor individual championships (2006 and 2007 5,000m).
The former competitor is now taking the skills he learned and passing them on through coaching as he currently serves as an Assistant Coach at William and Mary. Solinsky has five years of coaching experience spending time as a volunteer coach at the University of Portland for two years and spent one year as a student assistant while finishing his degree at Wisconsin.
The addition of this former American record holder builds on the solid foundation the Piedmont Cross Country Camps have with over 120 students attending the camps in each of the previous years. Last year, Jenkins and the staff at Piedmont College expanded the camp with two sessions allowing more one-on-one interaction between the coaches and athletes.
This year’s sessions will be held June 27-30 for a team camp and July 16-22 for an individual camp as athletes will stay in Piedmont College residence halls and eat at the dining hall to experience the Lion lifestyle. The team camp requires 20 campers per team with a maximum of four coaches and a bus driver staying for free while the individual camp allows coaches to stay for free with five athletes registered and a maximim of four coaches total.
Campers and coaches can register online at PiedmontCrossCountryCamps.com with the deadline for the team camp on June 20th while campers have until July 9th to register for the individual camp.
If you are unable to attend camp as a camper or coach but are interested in coming to see keynote speaker Chris Solinsky, contact Coach Jeff Jenkins at [email protected].
