NEWPORT NEWS, VA- Christopher Newport University Director of Athletics C.J. Woollum today announced the hiring of GEORGE SEWARD to direct the school’s cross country program. Seward has been named Assistant Head Coach for Cross Country and Distance Track & Field.
Tyler Wingard, who has led the CNU track & field program for the past three years, will now oversee the entire program as Head Coach of Track & Field and Cross Country.
Seward is taking the helm after being a CNU assistant coach under Keith Maurer for 16 years. During those 16 seasons, Captains men's teams won the USA South Conference Cross Country Championship every year and women's teams earned the conference title 14 times.
Seward’s impact on the Christopher Newport program was twice recognized by fellow coaches when he was named women's Mason Dixon Conference Coach of the Year.
The Newport News resident has been coaching cross country and track & field for 25 years and has worked with a number of Olympic trials qualifiers, All-Americans and individual conference champions.
“We are very fortunate to have had George Seward already in the program and ready to step up and take over for Keith Maurer,” Wingard said. “Coach Seward did an outstanding job with our middle distance group last year and his long history with the program gives him valuable insight into how we can move the program forward. I am excited about the future of the Cross Country/Distance program and look forward to working with Coach Seward in our new roles.”
Prior to coaching at CNU, Seward led the highly successful Tenneco Track Team for Newport News Shipbuilding. Over a nine-year period the team finished fourth in the country four times and won the Mid-Atlantic Regional Corporate Meet four times. Seward was both coach and athlete on these teams qualifying eight times as an individual to run the 5000 and 10000 meter races at the national championships.
Seward earned his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Christopher Newport University, where he ran cross country and track. He also received his MBA from The College of William and Mary. He is a USATF certified Level 2 Endurance Coach and is very close to completing his Level 3 certification.
"It is an honor to be responsible for the distance program at CNU,” Seward said. “Working at an NCAA Division III University allows a coach to help develop athletes to their full potential in an environment that stresses academics first. Being a former Division III athlete myself, I can relate to the dedication of the athletes participating in sports at CNU. My goal is to work with each individual athlete to bring out their full potential.”