The Godfather of the Penn Relays: Steve Dolan

The Penn Relays, hosted annually by the University of Pennsylvania at Franklin Field, has long been one of the most important events within the global track and field community.  

Its first meet in 1895 drew a crowd of 5,000 people, a number that has only continued to rise over the years — in 1958, attendance reached a high of 43,618 and in 2006, climbed to 113,000 spectators. To orchestrate an event of such magnitude requires a leader with an intense level of organization and vision. Who better to put together the Penn Relays than Penn’s own track and field coach — himself a veteran of the sport — Steven Dolan?

As a student at the University of St. Thomas, Dolan began competing in the decathlon, an event consisting of 10 track and field events. While at UST, he set school records in the decathlon, pentathlon, and javelin, and became the NCAA Division III national champion during his senior year in — cementing himself six years later with an induction into UST’s Hall of Fame.

Without a clear career objective upon graduation, Dolan decided to combine his skillset as a business administration major and track and field athlete. As he pursued a masters in athletic administration from the College of New Jersey, he discovered a newfound passion with his role as a graduate assistant track coach — jumpstarting his career as a collegiate coach.

After serving as an assistant coach, Dolan quickly made a name for himself as the director of men’s and women’s track and cross country at TCNJ. During his 11-year tenure at the school, he transformed its track program into one of best Division III programs in the country.

Dolan’s athletes were consistently some of the best in the nation — he coached 66 All-America award winners, five of whom were NCAA champions. For his incredible work, Dolan was awarded the NCAA Division III Regional Coach of the Year 12 times. He then transferred to Princeton, where he served as the head men’s cross country coach and assistant men’s track coach and proceeded to win NCAA Regional Coach of the Year four times.

After eight years at Princeton, Dolan came to Penn as the director of track and field and cross country in 2012. Track and field has long been one of the most important programs at Penn, due to the University’s contributions to the development of the sport. 

“I do think that there’s very few programs in the country [that] have a more connectedness and a richer history that we do here at Penn with track and field,” Dolan said. “So it's honestly kind of humbling to be a part of that.”

Upon the 2020 retirement of Dave Johnson, the previous Penn Relays director, Dolan was appointed to direct the annual meet. He entered the position with a clear plan to elevate the Relays by broadening its brand through hosting more events at Franklin Field and expanding the event’s audience by creating more entertaining experiences for both participants and attendees. 

Penn Athletic Director Alanna Shanahan applauded Dolan’s ability to tackle both the track and field program and Penn Relays. “Steve has the vision and experience to take this nationally and internationally recognized event and make it even more impactful,” she said. Aligning both programs increases resources to each, ultimately allowing them to expand and further their successes. 

Speaking on the event this year, Dolan revealed that around 15,000 athletes are competing and that there is an expected audience of over 100,000 people. “We always call it the Penn Relays Carnival,” he said. “The whole atmosphere, the vendor village, and there’s a DJ, [there’s] just a lot of energy down here.” 

While the schedule will remain similar to those of the past several years, Dolan is especially excited about the athletes that will be arriving in the coming days. 

“There’ll definitely be Olympians competing here — like athletes will end up at the Olympics this year,” Dolan said. “Both on college teams and professional athletes.”

In terms of high school athletes, the “highly contested” relays are the 4x100-meter and 4x400 relays, with over 650 teams competing in both events. 

One major change that Dolan made to the program was the addition of the men’s and women’s high jump in the Olympic Development Program, which is reserved for professional athletes. “I think that’ll be fun for the fans to see,” he said. Several international teams will also compete in the 128th rendition of the Penn Relays, making the annual competition “as exciting as any,” according to Dolan.

The 2024 Penn Relays will take place across a three-day period, from April 25-27 at Franklin Field. Penn students can get free tickets on Thursday and Friday and discounted tickets on Saturday.