The track and field coaching scenario has been majorly dominated by men. Digging up the history of female coaches, not many names come to the forefront. However, one of the few exceptions would be the Missouri-born Olympian. Specializing in shot put and discus throw, this star is a four-time Olympian. And if that was not enough, she refused to settle down and remain content.
Well, who are we talking about? It is none other than Connie Price-Smith. During her decorated career, Price-Smith recorded her personal bests in discus and shot put at 64.82m and 19.58m respectively. And she is elegantly carrying forward the same flair to her coaching career as well. In her 10 years in charge of the Ole Miss track and field and cross country program, the Rebels have won 14 individual NCAA titles, 380 NCAA points, and several All-American honors. But as she looks back on her coaching career during Black History Month, she cannot help but give a special place to her time as the US Women’s team’s head coach back in the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Having incredible success on her 2016 Rio tour, Price-Smith soon became a major figure in the female coaching realm. Sitting down for an interview with Erik Kaynard and Sharrieffa Barksdale on the Journey To Gold Zone podcast, the iconic athlete reflected on her experience. Price-Smith mentioned how she has been one of t of African-American women to have coached the U.S. national team. She said, “Yeah, you know, well going in there weren’t a lot of African-American women coaching. There were a few and those were people that I looked up to and kind of you know gotten insight from on what I should do and shouldn’t do.”
The legendary coach further detailed how her mother’s advice helped her significantly to cope with the challenging situation. “My mom said cross your t’s and dot your i’s and get to work, you know, and don’t leave anything to chance and take care of your business,” said Price-Smith. The 62-year-old then chimed in about how she also wanted to make things perfect by ensuring that people around her were also diligently attending to their tasks and business. Surely, all this advice made her stand out as Price-Smith led the US women’s track and field team to unprecedented heights in Rio.
Under her guidance, female athletes made significant contributions to the U.S. track and field team’s tally of 32 medals. Starting with the women’s 100m hurdles, the US women took all the glory as Brianna Rollins, Nia Ali, and Kristi Castlin pulled off a podium sweep. Next up, Price-Smith’s coaching helped the women clinch gold medals in the 400m hurdles, 4x400m and 4x100m relays, and the women’s long jump too. And what’s more? With Michelle Carter‘s gold in shot put, Price made sure her own discipline didn’t miss out on the medals either. No wonder she has had no dearth of honors.
Connie Price-Smith gets multiple Hall Of Fame honors
Connie Price-Smith is one of the 14 female athletes and an elite group of 30 US athletes to have ever competed in 4 Olympic games. Her 25 national titles are the most by any U.S. woman in U.S. history. Now, shifting focus to her coaching accolades, the 62-year-old has been nominated as the MVC Coach of the Year for a whopping 6 times! And on every occasion, she clinched an MVC championship with the team.
Owing to her glorious CV, Price-Smith was inducted into the Saluki Hall of Fame. She also received the honor of being a proud Hall of Famer for the USA Track and Field back in 2016. And that’s not all. The 62-year-old even made it to the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2024.
The Missouri native became one of the six coaches eligible to receive the honor in 2024. She was inducted into the list following a grand ceremony on December 17, 2024 at the USTFCCCA Convention, held at the Grande Lakes Resort in Orlando, Florida. Needless to say, she is an inspiration for all African-American women looking to make it big on the world’s biggest stages.
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