MARK ROWLAND
OTC Elite Head Coach
Mark Rowland was hired as OTC Elite’s Head Coach in December of 2008.
Career Coaching OTC Elite: Since leading the Oregon Track Club as head coach, Rowland has attracted some of the world's best from five different countries to pull on the green of the OTC and call Eugene-Springfield home, including Kenya, Ireland, Britain, Australia, and across the US. As listed by Track & Field News, OTC athletes have been ranked top 10 in the world between 2009 and 2011 seven times. In 2009, Nick Symmonds ranked 10th at the 800 meter distance. Then in 2010, Sally Kipyego ranked 7th at the 5,000 meter distance, Jemma Simpson was 10th at 800 meters and Nick again ranked top ten being 6th in the 800 meters. With 2011 being the most recently compiled rankings, Kipyego ranked top ten in two events being 3rd in the 5,000 and 2nd in the 10,000 meters, Simpson climbed in the rankings to number 6 in the 800, and Symmonds maintained his 6th place ranking.
Oregon Track Club Elite athletes consistently qualify and perform well on the national championship stage. At national outdoor chamionships in the US and UK, OTC athletes have medaled 16 times under Coach Rowland, 12 of which were titles. During the track & field season, OTC athletes are well represented at the international level. Many of the athletes compete in the Diamond League against the world's best. Oregon Track Club athletes frequently stand on the award podium at road races across the country.
2012 Highlights: Rowland's athletes were very successful in 2012 across the distance spectrum from 800 to 10,000 meters and even half marathon. Some notable performances outside of the Olympic Games and Trials, were OTC newcomer Sam Chelanga's road racing performances, Lauren Fleshman and Chris Thompson's debuts in the marathon (at the end of '11) and half marathon respectively, Julia Lucas's breakout in the 5,000 meters, and large OTC presence at international meets. At the US Olympic Trials in Eugene, Ore., 12 of 13 OTC athletes competed in the final of their respective event. The OTC Elite was well represented at the London Olympics with 10 athletes. Of these 10 athletes, 6 competed in their event final and 2 brought home medals, Kipyego with silver in the 10,000 and Eaton gold in the decathlon.
2011 Highlights: In 2011 at the IAAf World Championships in Daegu, South Korea, there were five of Rowland's athletes. These athletes included: Symmonds in the 800 meters, Bridget Franek in the 3,000 meter steeplechase, Ben Bruce also in the steeplechase, Lauren Fleshman in the 5,000, and Kipyego in the 10,000 meters who finished second. Two additional OTC Elite athletes competed in Daegu, Andrew Wheating in the 1,500 meters and Ashton Eaton in the decathlon who finished second.
Early Coaching Career: After an outstanding athletic career, Coach Rowland began his coaching career in 1997 as the Director of Coaching for the Athletics Youth Foundation in England. While serving as the Director of Coaching, Mark had many achievements and successes. In liaison with the Lewes Tertiary College he set up an athletics development course to enable athletes to pursue academic and vocational goals at a College of Further Education. Coach Rowland’s concept design has been such a success that other ‘athletic academies’ are now being established within the South East region. Coach Rowland also administered the Sussex Millennium Youth Games in 2000, and initially set up and developed a series of athletic challenges as part of a talent identification process for 14-16 year olds.
In the year 2000, Coach Rowland became the National Event Coach for the Steeplechase. As National Event Coach, he was responsible for the coordination of the National Strategy in support of athlete preparation for relevant Major Championships. Coach Rowland set up an effective Steeplechase Program, and identified a panel of coaches and support staff, who have contributed to National Strategy. He also assisted in the development of curriculum and coaching education materials for UK Athletics Coach Education. Finally, Coach Rowland actively mentored aspiring coaches in Endurance events and implemented testing protocols for Middle Distance events.
From the year 2000 to 2005 Coach Rowland also worked as the Performance Manager at UK Athletics where he set up and established the London South Performance Centre. He also established strong communication with coaches and athletes on the world-class potential plan.
Finally from 2005 to present time, Coach Rowland has worked as the Senior Performance Coach for Endurance at UK Athletics where his role is to provide direct coaching input to identified World Class Pathway athletes and direct technical input and support to other coaches and athletes. In this capacity Coach Rowland set up and established World Class Pathway athletes’ training in quality training environments, created a high-performance lifestyle and ethos within the Endurance Centre, and delivered high quality services to support World Class Performance Plan (WCPP) athletes. He effectively monitored athlete progression and implemented his Steeplechase Strategy as a template for other endurance events. World-class UK athletes Michael East and Hayley Tullett are a clear demonstration of the high level of expertise Coach Rowland possesses. In acknowledgment for his outstanding coaching skills and extraordinary success, coach Rowland was nominated as a coach for the UK track and field team at the Beijing Olympic Games.
Before Coaching: Mark Rowland rose to international acclaim as an athlete beginning in 1985. His major accomplishments as an athlete are:
• UK – 1985 1st place in 1500m
• UK – 1988 1st place in steeplechase, 1989 1st place 5000m
• 1987 - 1994 national representative for the UK in many major championships
• Bronze Medal at 1988 Olympic Games for the 3000m steeplechase event
• Silver Medal at 1990 at the European Championship in Croatia for the 3000m steeplechase event
