INA, Ill. (April 22, 2017) - Two Olympians, five NJCAA Coach of the Year Awards, seven NJCAA National Championships and more regional championships that you can shake a baton at, former Cross-Country and Track and Field Coach Brent McLain put RLC on the map.
The success started quickly. In just his second season, McLain芒鈧劉s Men芒鈧劉s Cross-Country team was the No. 1 team in the country in Division II. The 芒鈧揥inged Warriors芒鈧� became the first team in college history to capture an NJCAA National Championship.
芒鈧揢nbelievable,芒鈧� McLain said following the team芒鈧劉s championship. 芒鈧揑 was so happy for the team. They wanted it. And they worked hard to achieve it. It is a great day for us . . . an outstanding accomplishment for our school and our program.芒鈧�
Not content with a single national championship. McLain芒鈧劉s team repeated the next year and again captured Coach of the Year accolades. The same team that became the first Southern Illinois Juco team in any sport to win a national title in fall 2001 likewise became the first to repeat.
He also gave an inside look at what strategy they used to bring home a second national championship: 芒鈧撁⑩偓娄 this year (2002) provided even more of a sense of accomplishment. I really believe it was a lot more satisfying. Our strategy was to run as a pack the first two miles, so we could be stronger the last three miles, and that is exactly what they did. We were getting beat pretty bad at the two-mile point, but by the three-mile point I was starting to get excited the way they were making up ground. By the fourth mile, I probably had a smile from ear to ear. By the fifth mile I was getting pretty emotional.芒鈧�
But, the emotion didn芒鈧劉t end there. The 芒鈧揥inged Warriors芒鈧� cemented their legacy by three-peating in 2003, again earning McLain National Coach of the Year and a third NJCAA Division II Men芒鈧劉s Cross-Country National Championships.
McLain had yet another national championship in him, after finishing third in 2004 and 05, the 芒鈧揥inged Warriors芒鈧� team went the distance in 2006 to earn title number four, this time in NJCAA Division I.
The dominating Men芒鈧劉s Cross-Country reign at the turn of the century was headed by Brent McLain and the likes of two-time Division II National front-runner Ian Hornabrook from Australia and Kenyans Elkanah Kibet, Ben Cheruiyot and Stephen Sambu. The triumphant D-II Championships in fall 2001, 2002 and 2003 were magnified when the program also captured combined Division I crowns in 2006 and 2009.
McLain also coached some of the most decorated and successful athletes to compete under the Warrior banner.
Kenyan native Boaz Lalang 芒鈧損ut Ina in China芒鈧� when he became the first Warrior to compete at the highest level in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Lalang fell just short of making the finals, but the experience left an imprint on not only Lalang, but also his coach. It also showed a coming together of groups in and around RLC to make dreams come true.
Donations from 海角视频 faculty and staff, as well as other boosters in Southern Illinois, enabled Lalang to return home to Eldoret, Kenya, for the attempt to qualify.
A generous, surprise gift from the RLC Foundation made it possible for the McLains to enjoy the thrill of the Olympic experience with Lalang.
The McLains said after the competition: 芒鈧揥e芒鈧劉re not disappointed, but so happy to know an Olympian and have the joy of knowing we get to spend one more year with him . . . Thanks, Boaz, for giving us all a once-in-a lifetime experience. We are so proud of you and feel so thankful and lucky that we had the chance to represent you and 海角视频 in Beijing.芒鈧�
Lalang says of his Juco mentor, 芒鈧揑 like Coach McLain. Sometimes he gets mad, but I understand him. He is the right coach for the right runner.芒鈧�
Much like Lalang, fellow Kenyan Steven Sambu found not only success, but a home at RLC.
Sambu set himself apart by becoming the most decorated Warrior in team history. During his time at Ina, Sambu claimed 10 NJCAA crowns and 13 All-America distinctions before departing in 2010 for University of Arizona, where he was NCAA Cross-Country runner-up in the fall.
芒鈧揅oach McLain did a lot of things for me. He helped me a lot. I will not forget,芒鈧� Sambu said.
Ryan Bailey
Four years after Lalang carried Warrior dreams to the Olympics, another Ina athlete not only carried on that tradition but this time, he brought home some hardware.
Ryan Bailey represented the USA when he became the fifth-fastest man in the world at the 2012 London Olympics. Bailey surprised nearly everyone but himself by earning the third spot on the USA 100M squad behind two veterans.
During his year at RLC, Bailey won the Indoor 55M in 6.20 and the Outdoor 100M in 10.07 at the 2009 National Junior College Athletic Association Men芒鈧劉s Division I Track and Field Championships.
At the 2012 London Games, Bailey came in 5th in the finals of the men芒鈧劉s 100 meter behind some of the biggest names to ever compete in the iconic race, missing a medal by 0.09 seconds. He became the first Warrior to win an Olympic medal when he anchored the USA 4 x 100-Meter Relay Team to Silver. He ran the final stretch of the relay against iconic Jamaican Usain Bolt.
All said and told, McLain spent nine years coaching the cross-country team and eight years at the helm of the men芒鈧劉s track program.
MEN芒鈧劉S CROSS-COUNTRY
2000-2019
MEN芒鈧劉S TRACK AND FIELD
2001-2009
2008-2009
Men芒鈧劉s Indoor Track and Field ~
Region XXIV Champion (3rd, NJCAA Championships)
Anthony Acklin / NJCAA 芒鈧揂ssistant Coach of the Year芒鈧�
Men芒鈧劉s Outdoor Track and Field ~
Region XXIV Champion (3rd, NJCAA Championships)
Men芒鈧劉s Cross-Country ~
Region XXIV Champion (4th, NJCAA Championships)
NJCAA Academic Teams of the Year ~
Men芒鈧劉s Cross-Country (3.29 GPA, 1st-tie / 6)
2007-2008
Men芒鈧劉s Indoor Track and Field ~
NJCAA Division I National Champion (1st, Region XXIV)
Brent McLain / Men芒鈧劉s Indoor Track and Field 芒鈧揅oach of the Meet芒鈧�
Men芒鈧劉s Outdoor Track and Field ~
Region XXIV Champion (3rd, NJCAA Championships)
Women芒鈧劉s Outdoor Track and Field ~
Region XXIV Champion (3rd, NJCAA Championships)
Men芒鈧劉s Cross-Country ~
Region XXIV Champion (4th, NJCAA Championships)
NJCAA Academic Teams of the Year ~
Men芒鈧劉s Track and Field (3.26 GPA, 4th ~ Coaches Association)
2006-2007
Men芒鈧劉s Cross-Country ~
NJCAA Division I National Champion (1st, Region XXIV)
Men芒鈧劉s Indoor Track and Field ~
NJCAA Championship Runner-Up (1st, Region XXIV)
Men芒鈧劉s Outdoor Track and Field ~
Region XXIV Champion (4th-tie, NJCAA Championships)
2005-2006
Men芒鈧劉s Indoor Track and Field ~
NJCAA Championship Runner-Up (1st, Region XXIV Division)
Brent McLain / NJCAA 芒鈧揅oach of the Year芒鈧�
Men芒鈧劉s Cross-Country ~
Region XXIV Champion (3rd, NJCAA Championships)
NJCAA Academic Teams of the Year ~
Cross-Country (3.11 GPA, 5th / 9)
2004-2005
Men芒鈧劉s Indoor Track and Field ~
NJCAA Championship Runner-Up (1st, Region XXIV Division)
Brent McLain / NJCAA 芒鈧揅oach of the Year芒鈧�
Men芒鈧劉s Cross-Country ~
Region XXIV Champion (3rd, NJCAA Championships)
Men芒鈧劉s Outdoor Track and Field ~
5th, NJCAA National Championships
2003-2004
Men芒鈧劉s Cross-Country ~
NJCAA Division II National Champion (1st, Region XXIV D-II)
Brent McLain / NJCAA D-II 芒鈧揅oach of the Year芒鈧�
Men芒鈧劉s Indoor Track and Field ~
Region XXIV Champion (3rd, NJCAA Championships)
Men芒鈧劉s Outdoor Track and Field ~
6th, NJCAA National Championships
2002-2003
Men芒鈧劉s Cross-Country ~
NJCAA Division II National Champion (1st, Region XXIV D-II)
Brent McLain / NJCAA D-II 芒鈧揅oach of the Year芒鈧�
Men芒鈧劉s Indoor Track and Field ~
NJCAA Championship National Runner-Up (1st, Region XXIV)
Men芒鈧劉s Outdoor Track and Field ~
7th, NJCAA National Championships
2001-2002
Men芒鈧劉s Cross-Country ~
NJCAA Division II National Champion (1st, Region XXIV)
Brent McLain / NJCAA D-II 芒鈧揅oach of the Year芒鈧�
Men芒鈧劉s Indoor Track and Field ~
Region XXIV Champion (13th, NJCAA Championships)
Men芒鈧劉s Outdoor Track and Field ~
Region XXIV Champion
2000-2001
Men芒鈧劉s Cross-Country ~
7th, NJCAA Division II Championships