Track & Field Report: Cross country begins preparations as season nears

Former Texas A&M track and field stars took home six Olympic medals at the 2024 Olympic Games. Legendary head coach Pat Henry joined TexAgs Radio to discuss his former athletes' success in Paris and previewed cross country's upcoming season.

Key notes from Pat Henry interview

• We really did have a great Olympics this year. We had 10 athletes there and came home with six medals in track and field. It was a great showing from Texas A&M.
   
• Cross country reported yesterday. We have 30-plus running this year. We had a really good year last year. Our women qualified for the national championship, and our men got really close. We also added more talent on the distance side, so we are going to get after it with them. I’m looking forward to this year. I know coach Wendel McRaven is getting after it this morning.
   
• If those guys and ladies aren’t in shape coming in right now, it is going to be very difficult to compete. They do a lot of work all summer long, so they are continuing to do that. Competitions start here on September 13, and then it is a short schedule to the national championship in November. If you aren’t going good right now, you are in big trouble.
   
• Julia Abell has been a good addition to our whole group. Having her in that group has been good for our ladies. Wendell has done a good job for almost 20 years with me now. He is a great distance coach. It is very difficult on 12.6 scholarships to really focus on having seven or eight good distance runners to be competitive.
   
• We don’t overdo it in any area, so Wendel has done a great job for many years because he has probably worked with less than a lot of other programs. A lot of SEC schools don’t put a lot into cross country, while some do. The way you run your team dictates the success of your program.
   
• We start at home on September 13 with the Texas A&M Invitational, and then on October 18 is the Arturo Barrios meet. He was the world record holder at 10,000 meters for us. We have really good institutions coming for that meet, so that is going to be a fun one to watch, and we have a great course to watch it on.
   
• On November 1, we host the SEC Championships, so that is as good a meet as you are going to see. Then on November 15, we host the South Central Regional Cross Country Championships a week before the NCAA Championships, so that will be here at Texas A&M.
   
• Our indoor schedule will have us hosting the SEC Championships, as well. So we will be hosting in cross country and the indoor. We have a great SEC schedule. For outdoors, we host the NCAA First Round, where the entire West Coast comes. It is a great championship season at Texas A&M. It is going to be a great opportunity for people to watch track and field.
   
• We really don’t have a summer. We finish the outdoor meet, then the US Championships, then the Olympic Games, and now cross country. There is no stop in our sport, and that is just the way it is. We continue to train year round, and we just have to be smart in the way we train. We will have over 100 athletes in both programs, so we have some good talent, and we are looking forward to the season.