Westmont College coach Russell Smelley鈥檚 empathetic methods
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (BVM) — Every afternoon for almost half a century, Russell Smelley makes his way down to the Westmont College track to do what he does best: changing the lives of athletes one practice at a time.聽
Smelley began coaching cross country and track and field for the Westmont College Warriors in Santa Barbara in 1979. 45 years later, he is still at Westmont making an impact on every athlete he coaches. Smelley鈥檚 coaching philosophy is to focus on the whole individual, rather than just their athletic performance.聽
鈥淚 hope the people I coach know that I care about them whether they go to nationals or not,鈥� Smelley said.聽
This kind of coaching philosophy has led Smelley to have a very successful coaching career, not only on the track, but also off the track. He emphasizes vulnerability and hard work rather than just fast times and first place. As a result, his athletes develop great mental strength and a strong bond with their teammates that leads to success wherever they go.聽
In 1995, Smelley was named NAIA women鈥檚 coach of the year and just four years later, he was inducted into the NAIA Cross Country Hall of Fame. He has won Coach of the year for the Golden State Athletic Conference a total of 15 times between cross country and track. Smelley has had over 100 scholar athletes in his coaching career and over 170 NAIA track and field All-Americans.聽
In 2021, Smelley led the men鈥檚 track and field to fourth at NAIA Nationals, the highest the Westmont Warriors had ever placed. This year at nationals, Warriors sophomore Zola Sokhelatook took first place in the men鈥檚 800, making him the back-to-back champion.聽
Despite his success as a coach, Smelley stays very humble saying that he still learns from his athletes today.聽
鈥淚 learn empathy and to take everyone as an individual because I don’t know the whole story of what’s going on,鈥� Smelley said.聽
The most rewarding part of coaching according to Smelley is 鈥渦ltimately seeing people grow from the experience of athletics.鈥� Oftentimes the proudest moments for Smelley are not the wins at nationals or conference but the little triumphs a persevering athlete makes over time.聽聽聽
Seeing his athletes gain confidence in their abilities and believe that they can do something they never thought they could gives Smelley the most joy as a coach. Recently, a senior Warrior qualified for nationals in the women鈥檚 half marathon after three years of being in the back of the pack for the Warriors鈥� distance runners.
鈥淪omeone like [her] really makes me proud because she just stays with it even though she’s not having a lot of success,鈥� Smelley said.聽
Ultimately, her perseverance and Smelley鈥檚 empathetic coaching did lead to success. Smelley can expect to see more success like this as he continues the coaching grind.聽
For 45 years and counting, as practice begins to wind down, Smelley can be seen talking to athletes, helping coaches clean up and eventually beginning his trek back up to his office. He is simply preparing to do it again tomorrow and the next day for as long as he can.聽