Josh Hananel

Coach Tom Martin at a cross country practice in the fall. Martin has coached WJ cross country and track and field for nearly 30 years, and has left an impact on the lives of many athletes.

Cross country head coach Tom Martin was named a finalist for the Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) National Coach of the Year award. Martin was selected into the top 30 from a field of nearly 200 coaches across the country.

These coaches have been nationally recognized as ones who “mentor, teach, encourage, inspire and care for their athletes.”

Martin’s recognition comes after 29 years of coaching WJ athletes as a cross country and track and field coach. Through multiple school records and hundreds of meets, Martin has coached some of the fastest athletes in WJ history and has made an impact on hundreds. However, Martin hadn’t always expected to be coaching.

“In the ‘90s, [former WJ athletic director Tom] Rogers started coaching at Walter Johnson,” Martin said. “And by this time I had been just working for myself, I had opened up a consulting business. And he says ‘if you got time, if you could come help me coach the distance runners in the afternoons.’ And I started coming out a couple times a week, and I started loving it. So I told all my clients ‘no meetings after two.’”

Martin’s dedication to the sport has made him one of the most respected coaches in the county. His athletes, co-workers and people around him testify to this dedication.

“I think it’s a testament to someone like Marty that his former athletes come back and want to coach with him,” assistant track coach and WJ alum Kelyn Soong said. “I ran at WJ, there are other runners that ran at WJ that I know have either been on coach Martin’s coaching staff or have wanted to be. And I learned a ton. I think one of the guiding principles that Marty has is he really wants his athletes to look back fondly on their experience, and to enjoy the sport moving forward.”

“I think he really cares about every runner and more than just the times they’re running,” senior Megan Raue said. “He cares about how they’re doing and things outside of running. His coaching strategies are good and all the runners love him because he is very welcoming.”

Beyond coaching, Martin says he tries to be a role model and someone who wants to see young people succeed.

“When you think of the word positive, that’s who he is,” Soong said. “He has a talent for finding ways to motivate individual athletes. At the end of the day, you want to have fun, you want to push yourself, you want to reach your goals. He’ll help you get there, but he wants you to have a good experience.”

Martin and the other finalists, announced Jan. 21, will receive free access to PCA’s online coach course. The program includes interactive lessons about how to build a positive sports environment and set up youth athletes for the future.

The field will be narrowed in the coming weeks, where the top 10 will be finalized. The top 10 finalists will receive $500, along with recognition on PCA’s website.