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Warner inducted into USTFCCCA Hall of Fame
December 7, 2005
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USTFCCCA Hall of Famer |
GENEVA, N.Y.—William Smith Cross Country Head Coach Jack Warner was inducted into the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Hall of Fame on Nov. 30 in Jacksonville, Fla. Warner, a former head coach at Colgate and Cornell universities, was one of 13 individuals to form the Class of 2005.
Warner has over 50 years of experience in the track & field and cross country coaching arena. Widely renowned and respected as one of the sport’s great coaching minds, he has shown unparalleled dedication to his sport. At William Smith, he has directed the steady progress of one of the school’s youngest programs. Under his watchful eye, the Herons have been named a Cross Country Coaches Association All-Academic Team in each of his seasons. Warner also mentored the first Heron to run in the NCAA Championship meet and the program’s first All-American.
John F. “Jack” Warner was born in 1929 in Rome, N.Y. As an accomplished runner for Syracuse University from 1947 to 1951, he was voted MVP of the 1949 AAU National Championship cross country team, and captain of the 1950 Orange cross country team.
After graduating from Syracuse in 1951, Warner served three years of active duty in the U.S. Marine Corps. During this period, he also became “Coach Warner” when he became All-Marine Coach in 1954. Upon his discharge from the Marines, he spent a year as a physical education teacher and coach in the North Syracuse Central School System.
Warner joined the collegiate coaching ranks almost exactly 50 years ago, serving as an assistant coach at Kansas University from 1955 to 1956, where he also received a master’s degree in education. In 1956, he left Kansas and returned to Central New York, where he became head coach of the Colgate University track and cross country teams from 1956 to 1967. During his 11 years at Colgate, Warner’s teams posted a record of 135-82-3.
Warner left Colgate in 1967, and the “Jack Warner Era” began at Cornell University. Coach Warner served as head coach of men’s track & field and cross country from 1967 to 1990, and led the women’s track & field and cross country programs from 1982 to 1990. During his 23 year tenure, his Big Red teams compiled a record of 267-149-4. He coached three Olympians, 24 NCAA All-Americans, 38 All-East, 12 IC4A and ECAC Champions, and 91 Heptagonal Champions. Warner retired from Cornell University in 1990.
Not surprisingly, Warner returned to coaching in 1995 and has been the head coach of the William Smith Cross Country team for the past decade.
In addition to his coaching resume, Coach Warner has an impressive record of service to track & field. He served as NCAA representative on the governing council of the U.S. Track and Field Federation from 1970 to 1976. He was a founder and organizer of the NCAA Division I Track Coaches Association in 1980. He served both as vice president and president of the IC4A Track Coaches Association, and president of the Heps Coaches.
He served as Co-Coach of the Uganda Olympic team in 1960, a member of the Olympic Development Committee in 1978 and 1979, and as assistant men's coach for the U.S. Track and Field Team at the 1993 World Indoor Championships.
Befitting his impressive career, Warner has also received numerous honors. In 1978, he was named the NCAA District II Men’s Track Coach of the Year, and, in 1983, the District II Women’s Cross Country Co-Coach of the Year. In 1988, his alma mater honored him as a Letter Winner of Distinction.
Warner is a member of the Rome (N.Y.) Sports Hall of Fame and the Cornell Sports Hall of Fame. Most recently, he was inducted into the Niagara Association of USA Track & Field Hall of Fame with the Class of 2004.
The U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association contributed to this release.