SPIRE Academy is fortunate enough to have not only one or two, but three track and field Olympians on staff as head coaches at the school. These coaches understand what it takes to become top performers in their sport. Through their combined experience, they give SPIRE’s student athletes the opportunity to take their sport well beyond high school aspirations.

Head Jumps Coach, Tim Mack, proves to his student athletes that perseverance is the key to success; he understands this better than most. Both in ’96 and again in 2000 Mack tried out for the Olympics, and didn’t make the cut. In 2004, on his third attempt, he was successful and had the opportunity to represent the United States in Athens, where he won gold in the Men’s Pole Vault – setting an Olympic record at the time with a vault of 5.95 meters.

Believing in the power of executing tasks during stressful situations, Tim Mack helps his athletes at SPIRE reach their own dreams, by telling them his philosophy: “You have to create direction for yourself in order to get somewhere.”

Kibwé Johnson, SPIRE’s Director of Track and Field and Head Throws Coach, is another Olympian imparting valuable insights and training to student athletes in his program. Johnson competed in both the 2012 Olympics in London and 2016’s Olympics in Rio de Janeiro – bringing Team USA back into the limelight for Olympic throws events.

Johnson credits his experiences as an Olympian with his understanding of how every person has an individual capacity for working towards their goals. He brings that knowledge to his work at SPIRE and uses it to adapt his coaching style to each individual student athlete. A large part of Johnson’s coaching style is ensuring that he does not “over-coach”. As an Olympian, he understands better than anyone that pressure is only so valuable, while rest and off-time are just as important and should be included into any training regimen.

Head Sprint and Hurdles Coach, Kerron Stewart, is the third Olympian on staff at SPIRE, and the most decorated. Stewart, representing her home country of Jamaica, competed in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, earning both a Bronze and a Silver medal, in the 200m and 100m sprints, respectively. She competed again at the 2012 Olympic games held in London, where her and her teammates won Silver in the 4x100m relay.

Stewart leads by example; she feels her Olympic experience proves to the students that success comes from hard work, focus, and dedication. However, she also wants to emphasize to her athletes that sports are “…something that you do, but it’s not who you are.”

Coming from Jamaica, Stewart also knows the hardships of relocating to live and compete abroad. For SPIRE’s international students, her ability to relate to the everyday challenges they face is invaluable.

Her goal with all student athletes that she encounters is to “encourage them to be the best version of themselves”, and Coaching at SPIRE has allowed her to achieve that goal.

SPIRE athletes are at a great advantage due to the high level of experience that their coaching staff brings, but it doesn’t stop there. These coaches also bring a wealth of connections that enable SPIRE athletes to move beyond high school competitions. While all of the students at SPIRE want to perform well in their sport, they also want to go to college, and thanks to these networking abilities, SPIRE’s coaches can help them to reach that accomplishment as well.