The running community lost a visionary leader this week. Hall of fame cross country and track coach Al Carius died at the age of 83 after a long battle with cancer. The news was shared by North Central College athletics, where Carius coached for more than 50 years.
Carius grew up in Morton, Illinois, and earned two Big Ten individual titles in cross country (1962 and 1963) while competing for the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. After spending two years as a graduate assistant at his alma mater, Carius moved to Naperville, Illinois—beginning a legendary tenure with the Cardinals.
Carius’s coaching resume includes an unprecedented winning streak, as outlined by North Central athletic communications. After assuming the role of head coach to the men’s program in 1966, his cross-country teams earned 19 NCAA Division III national titles and 16 national runner-up finishes. Under his tutelage, the program finished fourth place or better at 42 out of 47 NCAA Division III championship appearances—a record across all collegiate divisions. He also coached eight individual national champions on the grass.
On the track, the program amassed 12 NCAA Division III track and field team titles. Carius’s athletes collected 536 All-America awards and 63 individual and relay national crowns.
The U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) named Carius “cross-country coach of the year” 12 times and “national track and field coach of the year” on two occasions. He was inducted into several hall of fame associations, including the Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame.
Carius retired from his head coach duties in 2020 after being diagnosed with stage four bone cancer. A year later, he published his book titled, Run for Fun and Personal Bests, which shared his coaching philosophies that inspired a number of athletes across multiple generations.
“The thing we value most is personal improvement, doing something you haven’t done before,” Carius said in his North Central Hall of Fame interview. “You’re not a better person if you’re an All-American and not a worse person if you’re not. Athletics should be fun. It does mean you always give your best. And when you do that, you can live with the results.”
Taylor Dutch is a writer and editor living in Austin, Texas, and a former NCAA track athlete who specializes in fitness, wellness, and endurance sports coverage. Her work has appeared in Runner’s World, SELF, Bicycling, Outside, and Podium Runner.
