Lananna (r) will not be around to see the grand re-opening of a renovated Hayward FieldGETTY IMAGES
The Univ. of Virginia hired former USA Track & Field President VIN LANANNA as Associate AD/Dir of Track & Field and Cross Country, "ending his 14-year stint in Eugene," according to a front-page piece by Chris Hansen of the Eugene REGISTER-GUARD. Though his Univ. of Oregon teams had "great success," winning six national titles, Lananna's "most memorable work came away from the track as he turned Hayward Field and Eugene into the epicenter of track and field in the United States during the past decade-plus by successfully bidding for the biggest meets in the world." As president of the local organizing committee TrackTown USA, Lananna was "able to make Hayward Field the landing spot for three U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials," with a fourth coming in '20, the '14 IAAF World Junior Championships, three USA Track & Field Outdoor Championships and seven NCAA Track & Field Championships. Lananna "won't be around to help reel in his biggest catch" -- the '21 IAAF World Outdoor Track & Field Championships -- or see the "grand re-opening this spring of Hayward Field." Lananna, who was elected president of USA Track & Field in '16, has been on "temporary administrative leave from that role" since early '18 because of the "conflicts related to Lananna's role" in a federal investigation (Eugene REGISTER-GUARD, 9/10).
OUT OF THE SPOTLIGHT: In Portland, Ken Goe noted as president of TrackTown USA, Lananna was "given high marks for staging the trials" at Hayward Field. But in the last two years, Lananna's profile in the Eugene track and field community "has diminished." He is "not part of Oregon21, the local organizing committee for the World Outdoor Championships." He "stepped down as president of TrackTown USA" in July of '18 (Portland OREGONIAN, 9/9).
