UTEP Track and Field Scores Big with Alan Culpepper Hire

After 30 years, Alan Culpepper is coming home. One of the city's most decorated distance runners will be returning to El Paso to serve as an assistant Track and Field coach at UTEP. Culpepper will work with the cross country and distance teams while assisting with day to day operations.

"UTEP played a significant role in my life growing up in El Paso and the community was always so supportive of my early development in the sport," Culpepper said in the official school release. "I feel honored to come full circle and my hope and intent will be to use my background and experience to the benefit of the program and student-athletes."

Culpepper won a total of five state titles in cross country and track while at Coronado High School. He then moved on to the University of Colorado where he became an eight-time NCAA All American and won the 5,000m National Championship in 1996. Alan and his wife Shayne both represented the United States in the Summer Olympics, and they competed in 2000 and 2004. He was later inducted into the University of Colorado Athletic Hall of Fame.

"We want to welcome Alan to UTEP, and are excited about his return to El Paso," UTEP track and field head coach Mika Laaksonen said. "The knowledge he has for distance events and coaching skills he possesses are excellent. Add multiyear experience as large event organizer, impressive fundraising record, and public speaking skills are second to none to his outstanding character and one can only be impressed."

Prior to accepting the assistant coaching position at UTEP, Culpepper spent six years as the Director of Operations and Marketing, Conference on World Affairs at the University of Colorado.