Six-time All-American and Georgetown graduate Samantha Nadel will join the North Carolina track and field and cross country staff as an assistant coach for distance events, the program announced Saturday. With her hire, the staff of Chris Miltenberg, UNC's new director of track and field and cross country, is officially complete.
"We're really excited to bring Sam to Carolina," Miltenberg said in a statement. "I recruited Sam to Georgetown many years ago and it is a great full circle for us to have the opportunity to work together again. Her experience as an athlete at the highest level both collegiately and beyond make her a perfect fit for the goals and vision we have for our student-athletes here at Carolina."
Nadel spent the last year training as a professional in Boston and also worked at a children's center. In college, Nadel earned All-America honors six times – thrice at Oregon, where she finished 21st in the 2016 NCAA Cross Country Championships, and thrice at Georgetown, where she competed for four years as an undergrad and won three Big East titles.
The addition of Nadel completed a round of hires for the Tar Heels in the last few months. The new names include Michael Eskind, associate head coach and recruiting coordinator; Amin Nikfar, assistant coach for throws events; Dylan Sorenson, assistant coach for distance events; Jessica Riden, associate director and assistant to the athletic director; and Adrian Wheatley, assistant coach for sprints and hurdles events.
The hires came after it was announced in June that the University would not renew the contract of Harlis Meaders, who had helmed the Tar Heels since 2012. Last season, UNC men's track and field placed 12th at the ACC Indoor Championships and seventh at the ACC Outdoor Championships, while the women's team finished 10th at outdoors and tied for 10th at indoors.
Weeks later, North Carolina announced the hire of Miltenberg, who led the Stanford track and field and cross country teams for seven years.
With an entirely new staff in tow, Miltenberg will look to lead the Tar Heels back to the top of the ACC. Early returns are promising – at the Elon Opener on Friday, the UNC men's cross country team finished third and the women's team finished second to begin their respective seasons.
