Carnegie Mellon track coach Gary Aldrich eager to guide U.S. athletes at Olympics

Gary Aldrich is making history at Carnegie Mellon.

CMU’s track and field coach will be the first from the school to coach in the Olympics when he guides the U.S. men’s team in shot put, discus, hammer and javelin.

Delayed a year by the covid-19 pandemic, the Tokyo Olympics start July 23.

“It’s been a roller-coaster of emotions,” Aldrich said in a CMU news release. “It’s been pretty crazy, but it’s finally becoming a reality. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, the pinnacle of my career thus far, for sure.”

Aldrich is the first from CMU to coach in the Olympics, but it’s seventh time he has coached Americans in international competition. He already has been to Mexico, London, Toronto and Barcelona, Spain. His first Team USA assignment was coaching in the Under-23 North American, Central American and Caribbean Athletic Association Championship in 2010.

“I kept getting high marks and kept moving up the ladder. I’ve been very fortunate,” he said.

During his 2 1/2-week stay in Tokyo, covid-19 restrictions will be in place, limiting Aldrich to the Olympic Village, the team’s training center and the Olympic Stadium, the venue for track and field competition. Aldrich and all of Team USA are fully vaccinated, but they must undergo multiple testing, wear a facial covering and abide by all protocols.

No spectators will be permitted at the events.

“It’s going to be an Olympic Games like no other,” Aldrich said. “We’ve had a number of conference calls, and we’ve received playbooks with information from the Japanese Olympic Committee and checklists from the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee. I’m reading up on a lot of material.”

During the Olympic Trials in Eugene, Ore., he reconnected with athletes he has coached in the past, including Rudy Winkler, USA record-holder in the hammer, and discus champion Mason Finley.

“Rudy and I go back around 12 years when he was a junior in high school, and Mason and I are Facebook friends,” he said.

Aldrich must make sure his athletes adhere to the protocols.

“We have to do our own covid testing within 96 hours before departure and then again 72 hours before departure. It’s all done remotely, via your smartphone and apps,” he said.

Aldrich will miss the opening ceremony because the Japanese Olympic Committee prohibits teams from entering Japan until five days before competition in their sport begins. He will arrive in Tokyo on July 25 and is hoping to participate in the closing ceremony Aug. 8.

But he’ll be visible if one of his athletes earn a medal.

“As the event coach, I’ll be the one handing the American flag to our medalist before he goes to the awards podium and the national anthem is played. I’ve been known to have a knack for getting on TV,” he said.

In eight years as CMU’s head track and field coach, he has led teams to six University Athletic Association championships. Seven CMU athletes have earned All-American honors under Aldrich, including Bram Miller, the NCAA runner-up in the shot put last spring.

“I’ve been incredibly fortunate that kids like Bram Miller have trusted and believed in what I was asking them to do,” he said. “I’ve worked hard, and they’ve made me look pretty darn good.”