Olson and Castagno became first Wheaton track and field athletes to compete at Olympic Trials

July 15, 2004

NORTON, MA- Wheaton College has established itself as one of the nation's top NCAA Division III men's and women's track and field programs, with a particular emphasis on recruiting some of the most highly-touted jumpers in the country. Proof of that took place this month, as senior high jumper Dan Olson (Voorheesville, NY/Albany Academy) was in pursuit of his Olympic dream at the 2004 United States Olympic Track and Field Trials held at the Alex G. Spanos Sports Complex in Sacramento, California.

Olson and former Wheaton standout Beth Castagno (Glendora, NJ/Haddonfield) '00 became the school's first track and field athletes to compete at an Olympic Trials. Olson did not reach the opening height during the preliminary event, but Castagno, who was one of just 14 athletes to advance to the finals, cleared the bar with a leap of 5' 11 1/2". In the finals, Castagno gave three valiant attempts in the opening height but was unable to clear the bar set at 5' 10 1/2".

Olson, who was one of the most sought after high school jumpers in the country, has continued his success in the college ranks. A five-time indoor and outdoor national champion through the first three years of his collegiate career, Olson placed third at his first national meet in the winter of 2002 before exploding on the scene to capture the last five NCAA Division III titles. He is the school record holder for the indoor event with a clearance of 7' 2 1/2".

As a high school senior, Olson landed a jump of 7' 4 1/2", the highest performances of any scholastic athlete that year. Putting himself on the map as a high school junior, Olson attracted the attention of several of the nation's top programs. "I looked at Cornell and Princeton, along with some state universities known for their Division I track programs," said Olson. "But only Wheaton had both the competitive track program and the high caliber of academics I wanted."

Head coach Paul Souza, who has guided the women's track and field program to eight national championships in the last six years, has the confidence that Olson can take his game to the next level. "It will take a good day and a lot of focus, but there is no question he has the ability to compete in the highest echelon," stated Souza, a former Olympic Trials qualifier.

Castagno, who helped lead Wheaton to its first two indoor national titles, still holds the school's indoor and outdoor high jump records. Clearing 5' 11 1/2" in the outdoor season and 5' 10" during the indoor slate, Castagno capped her collegiate career by winning her first individual event national crown at the outdoor meet her senior season. In addition to tying for third as a junior at the outdoor meet, she placed second at the indoor event as a senior and third as a junior. Spending her final two years at Wheaton, Castagno transferred to the Norton campus from Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania.

The world's finest national championship track meet, the Olympic Trials hosted more than 1,000 athletes competing for the right to represent Team USA at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece. The top three finishers in each event at Sacramento who met the Olympic "A" qualifying standard in their respective events were named to the U.S. Olympic roster. The meet ran July 9-18 and was broadcasted live on NBC and USA.

Complete information on the Olympic Trials can be found at USATF's web site, www.usatf.org.

Last updated on 7/26/04.
Send questions about this page to Scott Dietz or contact Wheaton College.

News Headlines

Wheaton reorganizes track and field staff, Souza and Mangiacotti named co-head coaches (more)

Three Wheaton track and field athletes earn national academic honors, both men's and women's squads draw accolades from USTFCCCA (more)

Three Wheaton track and field athletes meet NCAA standards, school record falls at ECAC Championship (more)