The architect of one of the nation’s most successful small college distance programs during the 1990s, Sam Ring returned to the University of Puget Sound in the fall of 2019 as assistant cross country and track coach under head coach Lisa Kushiyama.
Ring was inducted into the Puget Sound Hall of Fame in 2006. He coached the women’s cross country program to four consecutive NAIA National Championships (1992-95). He was named the NAIA Coach of the Year in 1993, and he was a six-time Regional Coach of the Year. He coached 78 All-American Loggers, two individual champions for cross country, and two more individual champions for track & field.
A native of Tacoma, Ring ran competitively at Central Washington. While competing for the Wildcats, he won eight league and regional championships in cross country and track, and set three school distance records. Ring qualified for seven national championship meets and earned All-American track honors in 1968 and 1969. While at Central he competed in the 1968 Olympic trials, running in the 3000-meter steeplechase.
Ring’s high school coaching career included three state girls cross country championships at Bellarmine, and two state boys track championships at Wilson – both in Tacoma. Ring coached Wilson athlete Darrell Robinson to the current high school national 400-meter record of 44.69..
Ring is a member of numerous Athletic Halls of Fame: Mount Tahoma High School, Wilson High School, Central Washington University, University of Puget Sound, Washington State Cross Country Coaches, Washington State Track Coaches and Pierce County.
Ring graduated from Central Washington in 1970 with a B.A. in Education, and from the University of Puget Sound in 1981 with a Masters in Educational Leadership.
