Mark Maloney of the Lexington Herald-Leader, who does as good a job covering track and field as anyone I know, has a story in Wednesday’s paper about the retirement of Kentucky track and field and cross country head coach Don Weber. It has the same overall narrative as the official release posted on UKathletics.com Tuesday, but adds some detail and color to the end of a UK institution’s tenure.Weber tells Maloney that he considered the possibility of stepping down throughout the season before informing Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart of his ultimate decision last month. In spite of some of the unknowns that come out of his retirement, Weber said he is “dead-certain that this is the right thing to do for Kentucky track.”That doesn’t mean saying goodbye will be easy for Weber or the student-athletes with whom he worked so closely:
Josh Nadzam, who came to UK as a walk-on and developed into a Southeastern Conference point-scorer in the mile, dropped by Tuesday to see Weber in the field house.“Thanking him for the opportunity that he gave me and just how great of a mentor he’s been to me,” Nadzam said. “Helping me develop as an athlete but, most importantly, as a man. Just helping with so many different facets in my life that expanded, way more than just track and field and running.”Weber said he is fearful of what September — cross country season — will feel like without coaching duties.He said he’ll miss “watching people really work at exploring their possibilities; getting better.”
In the end, Weber is sure of the decision he made:
His vacancy should attract many job applicants.In addition to an upgraded Shively Sports Center and a premier indoor facility in Nutter, a new outdoor track is near completion. Stands, lights, press box and storage facilities are in place, as is the asphalt oval. The major task left is to pour the Beynon synthetic surface, expected to take place in mid-July.As much as he would like to have had the new outdoor facility at his service, he said this is the right time for a change.“I kind of see this as just passing the baton. I’ve carried the baton for a long, long time here,” he said. ” … There are some significant possibilities here. And it just seemed like, where I was and the stage of my career, where the university is and where the athletics department is in terms of all the resources we have for track, now was the time to do it.”
