MINNEAPOLIS -- Nick Larson, who has served as a distance running coach at both the high school and collegiate levels in the Midwest, joined the Augsburg University coaching staff in 2021 as men's and women's cross country head coach. In addition to his duties in cross country, Larson also serves as an assistant coach for the men's and women's track and field teams, focusing on the distance runners.
Prior to coming to Augsburg, Larson served for three seasons as an assistant coach for the cross country and track and field teams at Saint Mary's University. From 2015 to 2018, he was a volunteer assistant coach for women's cross country and track and field at the University of Minnesota.
At Saint Mary's (2018-21), Larson designed and implemented training plans, was responsible for recruiting distance runners, and helped to maintain the teams' social media accounts, among other duties. Larson said that the Cardinals’ staff “laid the groundwork for the future by establishing a strong culture of team and family that included a tremendous amount of athlete buy-in, which led to many lifetime best performances. Also, I'm proud of how our team persevered through a very challenging 2020-21 year.”
As a volunteer assistant coach at Minnesota, Larson was part of a women's cross country squad that finished in the top four in both Big Ten and NCAA Midwest Regional competition each of his three seasons (2015-17). The Gophers finished fourth in Big Ten team competition in both 2015 and 2016, while finishing as conference runner-up in 2017, behind meet runner-up Madeline Strandemo. The Gophers finished 18th at the NCAA National Championships in 2016 and 19th in 2017. Minnesota had eight All-Big Ten and eight All-Region honorees during Larson's coaching tenure in cross country.
The Gophers finished in the top four in Big Ten indoor and outdoor track and field competition in each of his three seasons on the coaching staff (2016-18), including sweeping the indoor and outdoor conference titles in 2018. Larson helped to coach four Big Ten titlists, more than 60 Big Ten scorers and more than 20 national qualifiers.
From 2006 to 2011, Larson served as head coach for girls' track and field at Onalaska (Wis.) High School, then served in the same role at Shakopee (Minn.) High School from 2011 to 2015. He was also a cross country assistant coach at Onalaska from 2004 to 2010. Larson was voted Mississippi Valley Conference Girls' Track and Field Coach of the Year in 2009, when his Onalaska team won the league title. He also taught social studies, history, economics and psychology during his high school years.
Larson earned his bachelor's degree in education and social studies from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse in 2008, and his master's degree in education, teaching and learning from Saint Mary's in 2014. He holds USA Track and Field Level I Coaching certification, USTFCCCA Endurance Event Specialist and Track & Field Technical Coaching certification, and ALTIS Coaching the Endurance Events and Coaching the Short Sprints certification.
