Coach Newton

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• He was the first high school coach named to the U.S. Olympic track staff for the 1988 Games in Seoul, South Korea. He was an assistant manager in charge of marathon runners.

• He is enshrined in 14 halls of fame, reaching the pinnacle in 2004 when he was tabbed for the National High School Hall of Fame.

• Named National Cross Country Coach of the Year four times.

• He has written four books, concentrating on training and motivation.

• He has a 1,024-58 dual-meet record -- including a string of 72 consecutive victories -- in cross country.

• Before retiring in '00 with his first state track title, he compiled a 41-year record of 1,025-159 record in dual meets. "I went out on top, like Michael Jordan," he quipped.

• He has sent 130 athletes to colleges on either track or cross country scholarships. Thirteen of them were competing at colleges across the country in the same year.

• He ran every day (20 miles per week) for 21 years and 24 days before a stress fracture under his knee ended the streak at age 65. The world record is 25 years.

Monday, December 14, 2009
Updated: December 23, 11:37 AM ET
All-Decade Boys' Cross Country Team
By Dave Devine & Steve Underwood
ESPN RISE

Boys Team of the Decade: York (Elmhurst, Ill.) 2004
In 2004, when the new age of national team cross country championships was rolled out, an epic showdown was at hand between York and Fayetteville-Manlius (Manlius, N.Y.). Both teams were ranked No. 1 and No. 2 all year, with legendary coach Joe Newton's squad being led by front-runner Sean McNamara and the prodigal Dettman twins. When they finally met at Portland Meadows for the first NTN (as it was called then), the crew from the Land of Lincoln carried the day.

McNamara would finish first in 15:43.9, leading York to a 92-point total. Through the 2009 NXN, no boys team has had a lower score. Earlier, York had gone 1-2-3 at the Illinois 2A state meet, an unheard-of feat in a major state, and won by 95 points. It was the squad's 24th title under Newton. One of the small handful of consistently national elite programs, York had many great teams in the past and more would come later in the decade, but this one has been judged the best.

JOE NEWTON is 80-years-old, and in his 54th year of coaching at York High School He lead his team to their 26th state title in 2006. He is a master motivator, and is often called upon by Fortune 500 corporations to motivate leaders in business with his surefire wit, energy, and charisma.

CoachNewton.com

The official home of coach Joe Newton and the high school CROSS COUNTRY DYNASTY he built, THE LONG GREEN LINE, from York High School in Elmhurst, Illinois.