Jan. 6, 2010

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- After 27 years as the Head Track and Field Coach at the University of Missouri, Dr. Rick McGuire announced this morning his intention to retire from that position following the completion of the 2010 outdoor season, with his final day in the role scheduled for July 30th.

"This is not an easy decision, but certainly is an important decision for me and our family. Retirement must happen sometime. I don't know that there is ever a good time. But there certainly can be a right time! For us, I believe that this is the right time!"

"It is a great honor and privilege for me to serve as Coach at the University of Missouri! I love the University and I love coaching! I am not so much retiring from coaching as I am retiring from 35+ working weekends a year on the road."

To date, Coach McGuire has led Missouri athletes to 137 All-American honors, 106 individual conference championships, 7 NCAA individual or relay titles and 8 NCAA Regional championships. Beyond the NCAA season, McGuire has coached 46 Olympic Trials qualifiers and 27 USA National Team berths, even coaching four athletes to the pinnacle of athletic competition: the Olympic Games. Both Natasha Kaiser-Brown and Christian Cantwell went on to win Olympic silver medals. Cantwell has also won 3 world championships.

A hallmark of McGuire's program has been an emphasis on academic achievement, as evidenced by his team's long-standing presence on the USTFCCCA All-Academic list. The women's team has earned this status for 45 consecutive seasons, starting at the inception of the award in 1994. The men are now at 22 consecutive seasons. Individually, hundreds of his athletes have earned All-Academic honors. Under McGuire, Missouri Track and Field student-athletes have been awarded 22 NCAA Post Graduate scholarships at the conclusion of their undergraduate studies.

McGuire is recognized as a significant leader in the world of Track and Field, both at the collegiate level and beyond. He recently finished serving a three-year term as president of the NCAA Division 1 Track and Field Coaches Association, and prior to that served for four years on the NCAA Track and Field Committee. He was chosen as a member of the United States Olympic Team staff for both the 1992 and 1996 Olympic Games. He founded and for 28 years has served as the chair of the USATF Sport Psychology program. He has been honored by his peers with his induction into the Drake Relays Hall of Fame and the Missouri Track and Cross Country Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

Dr. McGuire has also served for 25 years as a Graduate Professor of Sport Psychology in the University's nationally prominent Department of Educational, School and Counseling Psychology. He began both the Master's and Doctoral programs in Sport Psychology. Today Missouri's graduate program in Applied Sport Psychology is considered one of the leading programs in the nation.

It is McGuire's intention to continue in his academic and teaching role, as well as contributing sport psychology support for the athletes, teams, coaches and staff in Missouri's Department of Intercollegiate Athletics.

"I am very grateful to Chancellor Brady Deaton and Athletic Director Mike Alden for their consistent and enthusiastic support for our program, our approach, our athletes and for me personally. I have worked closely with Mike and with Mark Alnutt, Senior Associate AD for Track and Field, in arriving at the decision to retire at this time. By making this announcement prior to the beginning of the competitive track and field seasons, it is our intention to be able to create and implement the plans and preparations that allow for a smooth and seamless transition to a very bright and successful future for the University of Missouri Track and Field program."

Longtime assistant and current Associate Head Coach, Brett Halter, has been named as the Interim Head Coach, and will work closely with Coach McGuire in this transition. Coach Halter has earned the distinction of being regarded as one of the world's finest coaches of throwers. His athletes are consistently among the NCAA and Big 12 Conference leaders. He is the coach of former Tiger Christian Cantwell, the reigning World Champion and Olympic Silver Medalist in the Shot Put.