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Cross Country/Track & Field Hires Michael Tamayo To Finalize Staff
9/27/2019 11:19 AM | Cross Country, Track & Field
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Utah cross country/track & field head coach Kyle Kepler has announced the addition of Michael Tamayo to serve as the program's Director of Operations. Tamayo has been involved with the cross country/track & field program since arriving in Salt Lake City in July of 2018.
"Michael is a great addition to our staff," said Kepler. "His knowledge and versatility will allow us to provide our student-athletes with the highest quality experience possible. It allows my coaching staff to focus more energy on the day-to-day needs of our student-athletes, practice, and recruiting. I am grateful to my sport supervisor, Liz Prince, and our entire athletics administration for their support of this new position within our program."
Tamayo previously served as the program's Volunteer Director of Operations before being hired on full-time. Working with an extremely large group of Utah student-athletes, Tamayo has held responsibilities such as planning team travel and communicating schedules between coaches and student-athletes to ensure efficient processes. He also has worked with Utah's marketing department as a graphic designer for all sports. Now responsible for heading the cross country/track & field social media campaign, Tamayo brings his innovative mind to support the program's creative content.
Tamayo was also tasked with overseeing the FUSC International Coaches Program with coaches from China, which is a program where foreign coaches are granted with the opportunity to work closely with the coaching staff to see what goes on behind the scenes of a Pac-12 cross country and track & field program. Tamayo is responsible for the communication between the Utah staff and international coaches, as well as overseeing weekly lectures that are prepared for the coaches.
Supplementing his organizational and planning skills, Tamayo brings additional experience to his Director of Operations role from serving as a co-manager at the top local running specialty store in Charlotte, N.C., as well as spending time working at the Salt Lake Running Company this past year. Tamayo held many responsibilities in these roles that showcased his managerial skills such as leading a team to achieve performance metrics, tracking and managing the flow of inventory, and assisting with the planning of affiliated race events.
Tamayo became involved with the University of Utah after moving from Charlotte, N.C., where he competed at UNC Charlotte (2011-2016) as a member of the cross country and track & field teams. As a student-athlete, Tamayo had an extremely successful career and imprinted his name into UNC-Charlotte's record books. Tamayo's career-best time of 1:48.94 in the outdoor 800M still stands as the school's all-time record. Tamayo also qualified for the USATF Indoor Championships in the 1000M and finished 12th overall.
Post collegiately, Tamayo served as a volunteer coach at his alma mater. The Mebane, N.C. native graduated from UNC-Charlotte with a bachelor's degree in mass media communication studies, while also earning a minor in journalism.
"Michael is a great addition to our staff," said Kepler. "His knowledge and versatility will allow us to provide our student-athletes with the highest quality experience possible. It allows my coaching staff to focus more energy on the day-to-day needs of our student-athletes, practice, and recruiting. I am grateful to my sport supervisor, Liz Prince, and our entire athletics administration for their support of this new position within our program."
Tamayo previously served as the program's Volunteer Director of Operations before being hired on full-time. Working with an extremely large group of Utah student-athletes, Tamayo has held responsibilities such as planning team travel and communicating schedules between coaches and student-athletes to ensure efficient processes. He also has worked with Utah's marketing department as a graphic designer for all sports. Now responsible for heading the cross country/track & field social media campaign, Tamayo brings his innovative mind to support the program's creative content.
Tamayo was also tasked with overseeing the FUSC International Coaches Program with coaches from China, which is a program where foreign coaches are granted with the opportunity to work closely with the coaching staff to see what goes on behind the scenes of a Pac-12 cross country and track & field program. Tamayo is responsible for the communication between the Utah staff and international coaches, as well as overseeing weekly lectures that are prepared for the coaches.
Supplementing his organizational and planning skills, Tamayo brings additional experience to his Director of Operations role from serving as a co-manager at the top local running specialty store in Charlotte, N.C., as well as spending time working at the Salt Lake Running Company this past year. Tamayo held many responsibilities in these roles that showcased his managerial skills such as leading a team to achieve performance metrics, tracking and managing the flow of inventory, and assisting with the planning of affiliated race events.
Tamayo became involved with the University of Utah after moving from Charlotte, N.C., where he competed at UNC Charlotte (2011-2016) as a member of the cross country and track & field teams. As a student-athlete, Tamayo had an extremely successful career and imprinted his name into UNC-Charlotte's record books. Tamayo's career-best time of 1:48.94 in the outdoor 800M still stands as the school's all-time record. Tamayo also qualified for the USATF Indoor Championships in the 1000M and finished 12th overall.
Post collegiately, Tamayo served as a volunteer coach at his alma mater. The Mebane, N.C. native graduated from UNC-Charlotte with a bachelor's degree in mass media communication studies, while also earning a minor in journalism.
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