Vote for Dan Browne as the FloTrack American Distance Coach of the Year!

DAN BROWNE, 41

Distance Coach | U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program (Portland, OR)

American Distance Athletes:
Paul Chelimo, Shadrack Kipchirchir, Leonard Korir

2016 Accomplishments:
3 U.S. Olympians (2 Events)
1 U.S. Olympic Medal (Men's 5,000m Silver)

2016 U.S. Top 10 Ranks (3):
No. 1 Men's 5,000m (13:03.90 -- Chelimo)
No. 2 Men's 10,000m (27:35.65 -- Korir)
No. 7 Men's 10,000m (27:58.32 -- Kipchirchir)

Over the past year, Dan Browne has coached all three of his athletes to first-time Olympic berths and one Olympic silver medal--all while serving in the United States Army.

Browne, a 2004 Olympian who completed the tough 10K/marathon double in Athens, coaches Paul Chelimo, Shadrack Kipchirchir and Leonard Korir while all four serve under the U.S. Army's World Class Athlete Program. By joining the U.S. Army, the Kenyan-born athletes were able to gain U.S. citizenship and eventually represent the United States on the Olympic stage.

Browne is a former WCAP member himself and is now a major in the Oregon National Guard on active duty. All of the WCAP athletes have a job, a military occupational specialty and all members go through Army basic training for 10 weeks and then move on to specific training for their respective areas of expertise. Despite the demands of being a member of the U.S. Army, Browne guided Chelimo, Kipchirchir and Korir to earn spots on the Olympic team and claim standout performances in Rio.

Just one second behind double Olympic champion Mo Farah, Chelimo threw down a massive kick to earn a silver medal in Rio. Korir and Kipchirchir each competed in the 10K and came away with season's bests when they finished 14th and 19th, respectively.

FloTrack Coach of the Year Schedule:

Dec. 7th - Nominee #1: Mark Wetmore and Heather Burroughs
Dec. 8th - Nominee #2: Alberto Salazar
Dec. 9th - Nominee #3: Ray Treacy
Dec. 10th - Nominee #4: Lee LaBadie
Dec. 11th - Nominee #5: Drew Wartenburg
Dec. 12th - Nominee #6: Dan Browne
Dec. 13th - Nominee #7: Jerry Schumacher, fan voting begins
Dec. 28th - Fan voting closes
Dec. 29th - Winner is announced

For the past decade, FloTrack has traveled the planet covering our sport and seen up close what a struggle it can be to compete at the highest level. Unlike in much of the rest of the world, it's tough for U.S. runners to find a coach who can devote enough time. Most professional coaches here either really work as college coaches or are sponsored by a single shoe company. To support the great work our professional coaches do, we're announcing the FloTrack American Distance Coach of the Year, presented by T-Mobile. Later this year, one coach will win $10,000 for his or her work with American distance runners in 2016.