Daniel Ireland

Ireland has also been a member of several organizations during his time as a head coach, starting in 2012 when he was the USTFCCCA Mid-Atlantic Region Women's Cross Country Representative, a title he held until the 2014 season. Currently he is the Ivy League Representative on the USTFCCCA DI Track and Field Executive Committee and since 2018 he has held the title of Vice President of the Metropolitan Conference.

Under Ireland's tutelage three student-athletes have gone on to represent the United States with Brian Zabilski (2016) and Kenny Vasbinder (2017) each punching their tickets in cross country and Kali Hatcher (2019) throwing on the red, white and blue in the triple jump at the 2019 U21 Pan American Games.

Columbia's cross country men posted their best finish since 2017 at the NCAA Cross Country Northeast Regionals, finishing fifth. The Lions also sent a pair of student-athletes to the NCAA Cross Country National Championships, with Phoebe Anderson and Tyler Berg representing the Lions.

During the indoor season, the Lions took home a pair of Ivy League Indoor titles, with the women's DMR squad and men's 4x800m group taking the title at Heps. And during the outdoor season, Columbia's Ivy League dominance in the 4x800m continued as the men's squad won the Ivy League title for the ninth time in 12 years and fourth-straight time going back to 2017.

The 2019 Cross Country season was one for the books, as for the third straight season the Lion women took the cross country Ivy League Heps title and on the men's side Kenny Vasbinder took the individual title and Tyler Berg (fourth) collected the best finish by a first-year man in program history. Ireland was, for the second straight season, named the Ivy League Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year.

During the 2020 indoor season, Columbia's successes continued, as Katie Wasserman became the first Lion woman to qualify for the NCAA Indoor National Championships (One-Mile Run) since 2018 and the 10th since 2002. At the Ivy League Indoor Heps, Columbia, under Ireland's watch, collected three individual titles. Jack Pihlkar (weight throw), Daniel Igbokwe (triple jump) and Anna Jordahl-Henry (high jump) all took first in their respective events at Heps.

Ireland led his Cross Country runners to success during the fall of 2018. The women's squad took home its second straight Ivy League Heps title, and it's sixth in program history. The men finished fifth in the field with Kenny Vasbinder finishing ninth overall. At the Northeast Regionals, the women once again topped the leaderboard finishing No. 1 in the region and No. 18 overall heading into NCAA National Championships. The women completed the season No. 18 in the country, with Libby Kokes being crossing the line first for the Lions in the No. 50 finisher in the field.

Ireland was named both Ivy League Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year and the USTFCCCA Cross Country Northeast Regional Coach of the Year in 2018.

The 2019 indoor and outdoor seasons saw great success for both the men and women of Columbia with the men scoring the most points at both the indoor (83 pts.) and outdoor (76 pts.) Ivy League Heps in program history. For the men, the 2019 season saw them finish top four at both the indoor and outdoor Heps during the same season for the first time in program history. Building off that success, Columbia sent Sam Ritz (One-Mile Run) to the NCAA Indoor National Championships and Allie Hays (5,000m); Brian Zabilski (5,000m); Alek Sauer (800m) and Daniel Igbokwe (Triple Jump) to the NCAA Outdoor National Championships. Hays had the best finish for Columbia, finishing 12th in the 5,000m final.

During the Outdoor season of 2017, both the men and women's teams impressed, sending 19 athletes to the NCAA East Prelims. Three of those runners earned All-American status by moving on to the NCAA Finals when Robert Napolitano advanced in the 1,500m, Natalie Tanner was one of three women to qualify in both the 5,000m & 10,000m, and Nell Crosby became the school record holder and second team All-American in the 3,000m Steeplechase. The Lions won seven events at the 2017 Outdoor Heps, led by six titles in the middle distance and distance events.

While hosting the 2017 Indoor Heps at the NYC Armory, Ireland helped Henna Rustami to a championship in the 3,000m run, before bouncing back to anchor the distance medley relay to another title. The men's effort was led by Alek Sauer, who went from fourth to first to take the 1,000m run, before being part of the winning 4x800m relay squad. In total, Columbia won seven titles at Indoor Heps.

Ireland coached two runners to All-American honors during the 2016 track & field seasons, in Robert Napolitano and Natalie Tanner. During the indoor season, Napolitano qualified for the 2016 NCAA Championships in the 1 Mile, thanks to a 3:58.98 during the Fastrack National Elite Meet. Tanner shined during the outdoor season, making the NCAA Outdoor Final in the 5,000m run, taking 15th place overall. During his second season at Columbia, Ireland led 14 Lions to the NCAA East Prelims, while 12 athletes put forth All-Ivy League performances, five won Ivy League Championships, and five school records were broken.

The fall of 2015 was a resurgence for the Columbia men, as the cross country team earned its second Ivy League title in three years. The men edged Penn, led by all-conference performers Aubrey Myjer (third), Jack Boyle (seventh) and Tait Rutherford (ninth). The women also had a strong finish at Heps, taking third behind all-conference runners Olivia Sadler and Leila Mantilla. Columbia was also victorious in two other cross country meets under Ireland, as the men and women were both victorious at the Leopard Invitational, while the before both teams won titles at the IC4A/ECAC Cross Country Championships.

In his first season on Morningside Heights, Ireland picked up Ivy League Indoor Women’s Coach of the Year honors, when the Columbia women claimed second at the Indoor Heps. The women put forth eight All-Ivy League performances and three championships during the indoor season, while the men were victorious in four events at the same meet. The outdoor season was another successful one for Columbia, when 11 all-conference performances were achieved at Outdoor Heps.

“I am excited and humbled to be named the Director of Cross Country and Track and Field at Columbia University,” Ireland said upon being hired. “Columbia has a long and storied tradition of success in cross country and track and field. I know that the young men and women who compete for Columbia are outstanding for their dedication to the sport, and their success in the classroom. I am excited to be working with many elite student-athletes.”

Ireland spent three years as the Head Men and Women’s Cross Country and Track and Field Coach at La Salle, where he won both a men and women’s Atlantic 10 Cross Country Championship, was named A-10 Coach of the Year for both men and women’s cross country, and coached individuals to great successes in indoor and outdoor track and field. Ireland's teams were equally successful in the classroom as his cross country and track and field squads consistently achieved USTFCCCA All-Academic team status during his tenure.

In three years at La Salle, Ireland coached two NCAA All-Americans, four NCAA Championships participants, 14 individual NCAA Regional Track qualifiers, one IC4A Champion, two ECAC Champions and 19 Atlantic 10 Conference Champions and he was named the A-10 Cross Country Coach of the Year four times. His student-athletes broke 10 school records and produced 108 All-East performances.

Formerly the Head Men’s Cross Country, Distance, and Middle Distance Coach at Yale, Ireland’s teams enjoyed tremendous success during his 12-year tenure. The Bulldogs regularly placed in the top 10 at NCAA Cross Country Regionals, including a fourth and fifth place finish in 2003 and 2004, respectively. Yale has also performed well at the IC4A Championship, placing in the top eight every year since 2003, including third in 2006.

Ireland coached a pair of All-Americans, 11 NCAA Regional Track Qualifiers, three IC4A Champions, and six Ivy League Champions at Yale. A total of 137 runners earned All-East status under his guidance and 41 earned all-Ivy League honors. In addition, his runners set 17 school records and had 83 performances that placed among the top 15 in Bulldog history.

In 2010, Ireland served as the NCAA Northeast Regional Cross Country Meet Director, coordinating all aspects of the men's and women's championship. For the past two seasons, he has also served as the NCAA Northeast Region Cross Country representative. Prior to coming to Yale in 1999, Ireland spent six years as an Assistant Cross Country and Track and Field Coach at Georgetown. During his time there, the Hoyas won 14 Big East team championships in men's and women's cross country and track.

In cross country, Georgetown finished in the top 10 at NCAA's five times on the women's side and once on the men's side. In track, the Hoyas finished in the top 10 nationally as a team a total of six times.

He also spent time coaching the preeminent distance running club in the country, the Reebok Enclave in Washington, D.C. for two seasons. During this time he worked with four Olympians.

Ireland ran for the Hoyas from 1988-91, qualifying for NCAA's three times in cross country. He won the 1991 Big East 10,000m outdoors and was a two-time All-Big East selection in cross country.

Ireland graduated from Georgetown in 1991 with a bachelor's degree in international relations and received his master's in liberal arts from Georgetown in 1998. A native of Woodbridge, Va., Ireland was inducted into Woodbridge High School's Hall of Fame in 2009. He resides in the Bronx with his wife Christi and his three children, Jacob, Alaina, and Addison.

The Ireland Files:

- 19 NCAA All-Americans

- 92 Individual NCAA Qualifiers

- 66 Ivy League Champions

- Four Ivy League Championships (2015 Men's Cross Country; 2017-19 Women's Cross Country)

- 74 USTFCCCA All-Academic Individual Honors

- 43 All-Academic Ivy League Selections

- Men and Women USTFCCCA All-Academic Teams (2014-19)