University of Idaho Director of Athletics Terry Gawlik announced the hire of veteran coach Tracy Hellman as the Director of Track and Field and Cross Country, Tuesday.
Hellman comes to Idaho with over two decades of experience at the NCAA DII level at Augustana University in Sioux Falls South Dakota. His career is highlighted by individual and team national titles, conference championships, All-American honors and academic success. He was named the 2011 NCAA DII Women's Cross-Country Coach of the Year and has 41 NSIC and Regional Coach of the Year honors.
He is capping his Augustana career with a championship for his women's team at the NCAA Central Regional as well as the individual championship on the men's side. His teams swept the NSIC Cross Country Championships and he earned both the men's and women's Coach of the Year honors.
"I am thrilled to welcome Tracy to Moscow to lead our track and field and cross-country programs here at Idaho," Gawlik said. "In over two decades at Augustana, he has shown that he is one of the most successful and respected coaches in the country. His team's success in competition and in the classroom speaks to the quality of people he recruits.
"He is a blue-collar coach who puts his student-athletes first and we believe he is absolutely the right person to lead the Vandals. I am grateful for Chris Walsh for his leadership on this search and for the feedback from our track and field student-athletes on the type of coach they wanted to lead the program."
Hellman came to Augustana in 2000 as the cross-country coach. He added track and field duties in 2004. The Vikings saw gradual improvement in the first few seasons, before starting an outstanding run in 2007 with his first conference title in cross country. Since that time, the Viking men have 14 titles while the women have won 10. They also have 11 combined NCAA Regional titles.
In 2011, the Augustana women took home the ultimate prize, the NCAA DII National Championship, at the championship meet in Spokane. The two cross country programs have combined for five top-three finishes at nationals.
For track and field, he has coached six individual national champions and one relay national champion. His athletes have picked up 191 All-American honors and 105 NSIC championships.
Academically, his teams take care of business. USTFCCA has honored 40 of his teams with All-Academic honors. Over 150 athletes have earned USTFCCA All-Academic Honors while over 700 have earned Academic All-Conference recognition.
Last year, Hellman was named to the prestigious Drake Relays Hall of Fame as a coach. The Drake Relays is one of the premiere meets in the country and their Hall of Fame includes some of the best coaches in collegiate track and field history.
"Being named Director of Track and Field/Cross Country at University of Idaho is a dream come true," Hellman said. "The potential for greatness within the program is a big reason why I applied for this position. Great academics - check. Great potential - check. Great opportunity - check. I do feel this program is a sleeping giant.
"Another big reason why I accepted this position was because of the people. I want to thank Athletic Director Terry Gawlik and Associate Athletic Director Chris Walsh for this amazing opportunity. I can't wait to get started and I am excited about developing relationships not only within the roster, but within the community. I am excited to get to work and see what we can do together as a team."
Hellman is a native of Redfield South Dakota and earned his undergrad at the University of Sioux Falls in South Dakota where he ran. He was a graduate assistant and earned his Master's degree at Humboldt State University in California.
He will assume his duties in early December. He will be joined in Moscow by his wife Patricia.
