UVA Athletics has signed track and field director Vin Lananna to a contract extension through the 2028 season.
Lananna is in his fifth season at UVA directing both the track and field and cross country programs, and he has built a program that had the men’s and women’s programs finish 10th and 11th, respectively, in the 2023 USTFCCCA Program of the Year rankings, an honor that recognizes the institution that has achieved the most success in each academic year spanning cross country, indoor track and field, and outdoor track and field.
Both the men’s and women’s cross country teams qualified for the NCAA Championships in 2022, marking the first time both programs qualified for the NCAAs in the same season since 2015. The women went on to place ninth at the national meet, marking their first appearance in the top 10 since the 2013 season.
On the track, Lananna has guided the Virginia men to consecutive top-15 finishes at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, including an 11th-place finish in 2023 which ranks as the program’s third-highest finish all-time. The Cavalier men also finished just 2.5 points from an ACC team title in 2023.
On the women’s side, Lananna’s Cavaliers have recorded two top-20 finishes. Prior to his arrival, the Virginia women had not cracked the NCAA’s top 20 since 1983.
“Vin has done an excellent job of advancing our track and field and cross country programs since joining our staff in 2019,” UVA Athletics Director Carla Williams said. “He was instrumental in bringing the 2023 NCAA Cross Country Championships to the University of Virginia and has taken a holistic approach in recruiting and developing talent across each track and field discipline. Vin brings great leadership to our track and field and cross country programs, and we are incredibly excited about their direction under his guidance.”
“We have a very motivated group of scholar athletes and a dynamic coaching staff, so I am optimistic about the future of the cross country/track & field program,” Lananna said. “I have the pleasure to work every day with a highly-successful group of coaches in a broad-based department. I believe in Carla Williams’ ambitious vision and look forward to playing a role in her plan for the University of Virginia Athletics.”
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Chris Graham
