For elite track & field athletes looking for specialized training opportunities after their college career, there’s a new program available geared toward helping them reach their full competitive potential.

SPIRE Academy has announced a Post-Collegiate Track & Field Training program to create an avenue for athletes seeking an elite level of coaching, training and support resources. SPIRE’s Director of Track & Field and Head Coach Kibwé Johnson, and his staff of Olympic medalists, including Tim Mack and Kerron Stewart, understand just how tough the competition can be, and know how to take athletes to the next level after their college careers have come to a close.

Johnson, Olympian, US champion and current US National Team coach, recognized a need for post-collegiate athletes who wanted to continue to refine and develop their skills. Over the years the opportunities, venues and resources to do so have become increasingly limited. Johnson saw the opportunity for SPIRE to step up and fill a needed void in the sport. 

“I’ve been part of USA Track & Field for a long time as a National Team athlete, coach and committee member,” Johnson explains. “One thing I’ve identified as a major pain point for emerging elite or elite athletes is the ability to train in an environment that lends itself to the life of high performance. This is precisely what we’re attempting to solve here with the Post Collegiate Program here at SPIRE.”

For post-collegiate athletes, the expense of living, training and supporting themselves is an investment not everyone can afford. That was the catalyst for considering two training tracks at SPIRE: one for post-collegiate individuals who would benefit from a work and train opportunity. The other was for post-collegiate elite athletes who need coaches, trainers and facilities, but who are not financially challenged.

The inaugural cohort is already hard at work at SPIRE. Three male track & field stars are currently training at the campus in the Greater Cleveland area. Johnson, Mack and Stewart are looking ahead for the next group to land on campus in 2023 and are actively working to include female track and field competitors as well.

Johnson continues, “None of this would be possible without the forward-thinking of our leadership team. Leaders who have walked the walk really set us apart in the world of high-performance training destinations. I can’t thank them enough for their trust in this new initiative, which is run alongside our residential HS and PG academy programs.”

Note: The SPIRE Post Collegiate T&F Training Program is invite-only, with a limited number of training places available.

For more information about the program, please contact Kibwé Johnson at kibwejohnson@spireinstitute.org or visit https://www.spireacademy.com/camps/extended-training/ to learn more.