Greenville Track Club-ELITE - a post-collegiate, Olympic-development program
established 2012
11 USA Olympic Trials Qualifiers
One Paris 2024 Olympian
established 2012
11 USA Olympic Trials Qualifiers
One Paris 2024 Olympian
|
|
We are happy to announce the long-awaited arrival of Sebastian King Garcia, newborn son of Sydney and Eduardo Garcia. He arrived on December 2 at 9:04 pm, weighing 7 pounds and 7 ounces and measuring 19 1/2 inches. We send our sincere CONGRATULATIONS to the Garcia family. It has been quite the year for Eddie, as he not only set two program records at the Half Marathon distance, but also competed in the 2024 Paris Olympic Marathon. Greenville Track Club-ELITE was established in 2012 and is in its second decade as a post-collegiate, Olympic-development program. The program developed and produced one participant for the 2024 Olympic Games marathon in Paris, four qualifiers for the 2016 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Los Angeles, one qualifier/participant for the 2019 Pam American Games Marathon in. Lima, Peru, three qualifiers/two participants for the 2020 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Atlanta, GA, one qualifier and participant in the 2021 USATF Olympic Track & Field Trials in the 3000m Steeplechase and three qualifiers for the 2024 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Orlando, FL. The program's runners set four South Carolina State road race records in 2020 (5K, 15K and Half Marathon--twice) and three (15K, 10-Mile and 20K) in 2021. GTC-ELITE also produced the South Carolina Men's 2020 Long Distance Runner of the Year.
The program is sponsored and supported by the 52-year-old Greenville Track Club, ASICS, Joy Real Estate (Adopt an Athlete partner), generous individual contributors and partnerships with Performance Therapy, Roll Recovery products, FinalSurge (on-line training log), ElliptiGO, NormaTec Recovery Boots, Coach Bob Williams Pace Calculator, the DorsiFlex (stretching device), the MOBO board (balance & mobility) and LEVER Movement (treadmill body weight support). The club is a proud and active member of both the Road Runners Club of America and USATF.
0 Comments
  Greenville Track Club-ELITE's Jack Mastandrea ran 26:13 to defend his title at the CPI Security Charlotte Turkey Trot 8K. Using this event as a final tuneup before the upcoming California International Marathon in Sacramento, Mastandrea collected his second consecutive carved wooden Turkey trophy. It was the fifth time a GTC-ELITE runner has won this traditional event: Adam Freudenthal (2012); Trent Binford-Walsh (2014), Alison Parris (2014), and Mastandrea (2023 & 2024). The event, which had both the 8K and a 5K, attracted almost 8,000 participants and is run through the Southpark area of Charlotte.  Greenville Track Club-ELITE was established in 2012 and is in its second decade as a post-collegiate, Olympic-development program. The program developed and produced one participant for the 2024 Olympic Games marathon in Paris, four qualifiers for the 2016 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Los Angeles, one qualifier/participant for the 2019 Pam American Games Marathon in. Lima, Peru, three qualifiers/two participants for the 2020 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Atlanta, GA, one qualifier and participant in the 2021 USATF Olympic Track & Field Trials in the 3000m Steeplechase and three qualifiers for the 2024 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Orlando, FL. The program's runners set four South Carolina State road race records in 2020 (5K, 15K and Half Marathon--twice) and three (15K, 10-Mile and 20K) in 2021. GTC-ELITE also produced the South Carolina Men's 2020 Long Distance Runner of the Year.
The program is sponsored and supported by the 52-year-old Greenville Track Club, ASICS, Joy Real Estate (Adopt an Athlete partner), generous individual contributors and partnerships with Performance Therapy, Roll Recovery products, FinalSurge (on-line training log), ElliptiGO, NormaTec Recovery Boots, Coach Bob Williams Pace Calculator, the DorsiFlex (stretching device), the MOBO board (balance & mobility) and LEVER Movement (treadmill body weight support). The club is a proud and active member of both the Road Runners Club of America and USATF.   photo: Doug McSchooler/for IndyStar Greenville Track Club-ELITE's Jack Mastandrea and Jason Weitzel ran 1:03:49 and 1:04:00 to place 2nd and 3rd in the Indianapolis Monumental Half Marathon on Saturday morning. Jack's time was a new GTC-ELITE program record, besting Eduardo Garcia's 1:03:53 from April of this year (2024), and Jason's time was a new personal best as he cut 45 seconds from his previous best. Jason's time is now tied for fourth on the program's all-time half marathon performance list. The two training partners ran together for much of the race and passed 15K at 45:47. Jack began to move ahead of Jason after that and finished 11 seconds before him. Mastandrea earned $600 for his runner-up placing while Weitzel won $450 for third. 
 photo: Doug McSchooler/for IndyStar GTC-ELITE Top Ten Half Marathon Performances Greenville Track Club-ELITE was established in 2012 and is in its second decade as a post-collegiate, Olympic-development program. The program developed and produced one participant for the 2024 Olympic Games marathon in Paris, four qualifiers for the 2016 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Los Angeles, one qualifier/participant for the 2019 Pam American Games Marathon in. Lima, Peru, three qualifiers/two participants for the 2020 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Atlanta, GA, one qualifier and participant in the 2021 USATF Olympic Track & Field Trials in the 3000m Steeplechase and three qualifiers for the 2024 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Orlando, FL. The program's runners set four South Carolina State road race records in 2020 (5K, 15K and Half Marathon--twice) and three (15K, 10-Mile and 20K) in 2021. GTC-ELITE also produced the South Carolina Men's 2020 Long Distance Runner of the Year.
The program is sponsored and supported by the 52-year-old Greenville Track Club, ASICS, Joy Real Estate (Adopt an Athlete partner), generous individual contributors and partnerships with Performance Therapy, Roll Recovery products, FinalSurge (on-line training log), ElliptiGO, NormaTec Recovery Boots, Coach Bob Williams Pace Calculator, the DorsiFlex (stretching device), the MOBO board (balance & mobility) and LEVER Movement (treadmill body weight support). The club is a proud and active member of both the Road Runners Club of America and USATF. GTC-ELITE's Mastandrea and Weitzel Remain Ranked 1st and 2nd in South Carolina Road Race Rankings11/6/2024  Jack Mastandrea and Jason Weitzel Greenville Track Club-ELITE's Jack Mastandrea continues to be ranked first in the most recent South Carolina Road Race Rankings published by USATF State Record Keeper Bill Marable. His teammate and training partner, Jason Weitzel, remains second in the rankings. Their teammate Ryan Drew is now ranked fifth. Jack and Jason have frequently exchanged places during 2024 with Weitzel winning the Downtown Greenville 5K in January and Mastandrea placing second. Then Jack placed ahead of Jason at the 2024 USATF Olympic Marathon Trials in Orlando and was 12th (29:03) overall at Charleston's Cooper River Bridge Run, while Jason was 14th (29:24). Jason ran 29:13 and Jack 29:31 for 10,000 meters on the track at the Portland Track Festival in June. Then Jack placed 7th and Jason 9th in the USATF 8K Road Championships at the Crazy 8s road race in Kingsport, TN on July 20.Jack then placed 13th in a deep field at the USATF 20K Championships in the Faxon Law New Haven Road Race on September 2. Jack and Jason most recently competed in the USATF 10K Championships at the Great Cow Harbor 10K in Northport, NY, placing 10th and 12th respectively. However, that race and some of the previous mentioned events were not within the confines of South Carolina and did not factor in the SC Road Race Rankings. Their immediate future plans include competing at the Indianapolis Monumental Half Marathon on November 9th (which will not affect the SC rankings). GTC-ELITE alums Ricky Flynn (Greenville) and Roland Hakes ( Columbia) are ranked 3rd and 6th. Greenville runners occupy six of the top ten ranking positions. Sergio Cuartas, who frequently trains with GTC-ELITE, is ranked 8th. South Carolina Road Race Rankings |
 Jack and Jason pre-race. |  Mastandrea (bib 25) during first mile. |
Top 15 Men at USATF 10K Championships
Great Cow Harbor 10K Elevation Profile
 Mastandrea (bib 25) with 400m to finish. |  Weitzel finishing 12th for the third consecutive year. |
Historical GTC-ELITE Men's Top Performances at Great Cow Harbor 10K
| 1. Jack Mastandrea, 29:21 - 10th (2024)* 2. Jason Weitzel, 29:40 - 12th (2022)* 3. Karl Thiessen, 29:42 -11th (2023)* 4. Jason Weitzel, 29:43 - 12th (2024)* 5. Jason Weitzel, 29:46 - 12th (2023)* 6. Adam Freudenthal, 29:49 - 6th (2014) 7. Eduardo Garcia, 29:57 - 15th (2023)* 8. Mark Leininger, 30:16 - 6th (2016) * USATF 10K Championships | 9. Eduardo Garcia, 30:16 - 9th (2018) 10. Mark Leininger, 30:47 - 6th (2015) 11. Victor Pataky, 30:52 - 11th (2019) 12. Adam Freudenthal, 31:02 - 9th (2013) 13. Tyler Morse, 31:15 - 13th (2017) 14. Austin Steagall, 31:16 - 9th (2016) 15. Victor Pataky, 31:27 - 15th (2018) 16. Chass Armstrong, 32:14 -13th (2013) |
The top ten USATF 10K male finishers. Mastandrea is second row on the far left.
Greenville Track Club-ELITE was established in 2012 and is in its second decade as a post-collegiate, Olympic-development program. The program developed and produced one participant for the 2024 Olympic Games marathon in Paris, four qualifiers for the 2016 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Los Angeles, one qualifier/participant for the 2019 Pam American Games Marathon in. Lima, Peru, three qualifiers/two participants for the 2020 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Atlanta, GA, one qualifier and participant in the 2021 USATF Olympic Track & Field Trials in the 3000m Steeplechase and three qualifiers for the 2024 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Orlando, FL. The program's runners set four South Carolina State road race records in 2020 (5K, 15K and Half Marathon--twice) and three (15K, 10-Mile and 20K) in 2021. GTC-ELITE also produced the South Carolina Men's 2020 Long Distance Runner of the Year.
The program is sponsored and supported by the 52-year-old Greenville Track Club, ASICS, Joy Real Estate (Adopt an Athlete partner), generous individual contributors and partnerships with Performance Therapy, Roll Recovery products, FinalSurge (on-line training log), ElliptiGO, NormaTec Recovery Boots, Coach Bob Williams Pace Calculator, the DorsiFlex (stretching device), the MOBO board (balance & mobility) and LEVER Movement (treadmill body weight support). The club is a proud and active member of both the Road Runners Club of America and USATF.
The program is sponsored and supported by the 52-year-old Greenville Track Club, ASICS, Joy Real Estate (Adopt an Athlete partner), generous individual contributors and partnerships with Performance Therapy, Roll Recovery products, FinalSurge (on-line training log), ElliptiGO, NormaTec Recovery Boots, Coach Bob Williams Pace Calculator, the DorsiFlex (stretching device), the MOBO board (balance & mobility) and LEVER Movement (treadmill body weight support). The club is a proud and active member of both the Road Runners Club of America and USATF.
Greenville Track Club-ELITE's Jack Mastandrea is now ranked first in the most recent South Carolina Road Race Rankings published by USATF State Record Keeper Bill Marable. Mastandrea recently set a course record (14:13) in winning the Michelin Memorial 5K on August 17, finishing ahead of his teammate Jason Weitzel. Jack was previously third in the past few rankings and moved past Jason, who maintained his runner-up position.
The two training partners have frequently exchanged places during 2024 with Weitzel winning the Downtown Greenville 5K in January and Mastandrea placing second. Then Jack placed ahead of Jason at the 2024 USATF Olympic Marathon Trials in Orlando and was 12th (29:03) overall at Charleston's Cooper River Bridge Run, while Jason was 14th (29:24). Jason ran 29:13 and Jack 29:31 for 10,000 meters on the track at the Portland Track Festival in June. Then Jack placed 7th and Jason 9th in the USATF 8K Road Championships at the Crazy 8s road race in Kingsport, TN on July 20.
Jack recently placed 13th in a deep field at the USATF 20K Championships in the Faxon Law New Haven Road Race on September 2. However, that race and some of the previous mentioned events were not within the confines of South Carolina and did not factor in the SC Road Race Rankings.
One of their other teammates, Eduardo Garcia, dropped out of the rankings this month due to not racing in South Carolina since April as he prepared for the Paris 2024 Olympic marathon. And another teammate, Ryan Drew, earned his first top ten ranking in 7th with a win at the Red, White and Blue Shoes 5K on July 4th and a fourth place finish at the Michelin Memorial 5K in August.
GTC-ELITE alums Ricky Flynn (Greenville) and Roland Hakes ( Columbia) are ranked 4th and 6th. Greenville runners occupy six of the top ten ranking positions.
The two training partners have frequently exchanged places during 2024 with Weitzel winning the Downtown Greenville 5K in January and Mastandrea placing second. Then Jack placed ahead of Jason at the 2024 USATF Olympic Marathon Trials in Orlando and was 12th (29:03) overall at Charleston's Cooper River Bridge Run, while Jason was 14th (29:24). Jason ran 29:13 and Jack 29:31 for 10,000 meters on the track at the Portland Track Festival in June. Then Jack placed 7th and Jason 9th in the USATF 8K Road Championships at the Crazy 8s road race in Kingsport, TN on July 20.
Jack recently placed 13th in a deep field at the USATF 20K Championships in the Faxon Law New Haven Road Race on September 2. However, that race and some of the previous mentioned events were not within the confines of South Carolina and did not factor in the SC Road Race Rankings.
One of their other teammates, Eduardo Garcia, dropped out of the rankings this month due to not racing in South Carolina since April as he prepared for the Paris 2024 Olympic marathon. And another teammate, Ryan Drew, earned his first top ten ranking in 7th with a win at the Red, White and Blue Shoes 5K on July 4th and a fourth place finish at the Michelin Memorial 5K in August.
GTC-ELITE alums Ricky Flynn (Greenville) and Roland Hakes ( Columbia) are ranked 4th and 6th. Greenville runners occupy six of the top ten ranking positions.
South Carolina Road Race Rankings
as of September 2, 2024
Greenville Track Club-ELITE was established in 2012 and is in its second decade as a post-collegiate, Olympic-development program. The program developed and produced one participant for the 2024 Olympic Games marathon in Paris, four qualifiers for the 2016 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Los Angeles, one qualifier/participant for the 2019 Pam American Games Marathon in. Lima, Peru, three qualifiers/two participants for the 2020 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Atlanta, GA, one qualifier and participant in the 2021 USATF Olympic Track & Field Trials in the 3000m Steeplechase and three qualifiers for the 2024 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Orlando, FL. The program's runners set four South Carolina State road race records in 2020 (5K, 15K and Half Marathon--twice) and three (15K, 10-Mile and 20K) in 2021. GTC-ELITE also produced the South Carolina Men's 2020 Long Distance Runner of the Year.
The program is sponsored and supported by the 52-year-old Greenville Track Club, ASICS, Joy Real Estate (Adopt an Athlete partner), generous individual contributors and partnerships with Performance Therapy, Roll Recovery products, FinalSurge (on-line training log), ElliptiGO, NormaTec Recovery Boots, Coach Bob Williams Pace Calculator, the DorsiFlex (stretching device), the MOBO board (balance & mobility) and LEVER Movement (treadmill body weight support). The club is a proud and active member of both the Road Runners Club of America and USATF.
The program is sponsored and supported by the 52-year-old Greenville Track Club, ASICS, Joy Real Estate (Adopt an Athlete partner), generous individual contributors and partnerships with Performance Therapy, Roll Recovery products, FinalSurge (on-line training log), ElliptiGO, NormaTec Recovery Boots, Coach Bob Williams Pace Calculator, the DorsiFlex (stretching device), the MOBO board (balance & mobility) and LEVER Movement (treadmill body weight support). The club is a proud and active member of both the Road Runners Club of America and USATF.
 |  |
Greenville Track Club-ELITE's Jack Mastandrea ran 1:01:00 to place 13th in the 2024 USATF 20K Road Championship at the Faxon Law New Haven Road Race on Monday morning. His performance was a new club record for a 20K road race and the fastest time at this event for a GTC-ELITE athlete.
 |  |
Greenville Track Club-ELITE was established in 2012 and is in its second decade as a post-collegiate, Olympic-development program. The program developed and produced one participant for the 2024 Olympic Games marathon in Paris, four qualifiers for the 2016 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Los Angeles, one qualifier/participant for the 2019 Pam American Games Marathon in. Lima, Peru, three qualifiers/two participants for the 2020 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Atlanta, GA, one qualifier and participant in the 2021 USATF Olympic Track & Field Trials in the 3000m Steeplechase and three qualifiers for the 2024 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Orlando, FL. The program's runners set four South Carolina State road race records in 2020 (5K, 15K and Half Marathon--twice) and three (15K, 10-Mile and 20K) in 2021. GTC-ELITE also produced the South Carolina Men's 2020 Long Distance Runner of the Year.
The program is sponsored and supported by the 52-year-old Greenville Track Club, ASICS, Joy Real Estate (Adopt an Athlete partner), generous individual contributors and partnerships with Performance Therapy, Carolina Spine and Rehab, Roll Recovery products, FinalSurge (on-line training log), ElliptiGO, NormaTec Recovery Boots, Cocoa Elite recovery products, UCAN energy products, Coach Bob Williams Pace Calculator, the DorsiFlex (stretching device), the MOBO board (balance & mobility), On Pace Wellness (nutrition coaching) and LEVER Movement (treadmill body weight support). The club is a proud and active member of both the Road Runners Club of America and USATF.
The program is sponsored and supported by the 52-year-old Greenville Track Club, ASICS, Joy Real Estate (Adopt an Athlete partner), generous individual contributors and partnerships with Performance Therapy, Carolina Spine and Rehab, Roll Recovery products, FinalSurge (on-line training log), ElliptiGO, NormaTec Recovery Boots, Cocoa Elite recovery products, UCAN energy products, Coach Bob Williams Pace Calculator, the DorsiFlex (stretching device), the MOBO board (balance & mobility), On Pace Wellness (nutrition coaching) and LEVER Movement (treadmill body weight support). The club is a proud and active member of both the Road Runners Club of America and USATF.
Greenville Track Club-ELITE's Karl Thiessen has been hired by Charleston Southern University for the position of assistant track & field/cross country coach to work primarily with the women's distance runners.
"We are excited to add Karl to our staff," said Charleston Southern Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Jim Stintzi." I believe his experience as a high-level runner at Tennessee and on the professional level will help our student-athletes and our track and cross country teams rise to another level!"
Thiessen spent the past year as a member of Greenville Track Club-ELITE. One of the highlights of his year came in the USATF 10K championships in Northport, NY (Great Cow Harbor 10K), where he placed 11th overall in the star-studded field. Among the three Half Marathons that he competed in, he ran a personal best of 1:04:00 at the 2024 Aramco Houston Half Marathon in January. He also ran a new course record of 24:06 in winning the Sunrise 8K in Simpsonville, SC.
While residing in Greenville he was employed by Joy Real Estate, as part of GTC-ELITE's "Adopt An Athlete" program. He also worked with Blue Collar Endurance Training where he wrote training schedules for up-and-coming athletes and oversaw the development of over 15 athletes per month.
GTC-ELITE Director/Coach Mike Caldwell commented, "From our program's beginning, our mission has been to develop young adult athletes not only in their running careers, but also in life development. Karl only spent a year in our program, but we have seen him develop and mature as a person and most importantly discover and define his career interests. He deeply cares about running and we look forward to seeing him continue to learn and apply his knowledge with his collegiate athletes."
"We are excited to add Karl to our staff," said Charleston Southern Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Jim Stintzi." I believe his experience as a high-level runner at Tennessee and on the professional level will help our student-athletes and our track and cross country teams rise to another level!"
Thiessen spent the past year as a member of Greenville Track Club-ELITE. One of the highlights of his year came in the USATF 10K championships in Northport, NY (Great Cow Harbor 10K), where he placed 11th overall in the star-studded field. Among the three Half Marathons that he competed in, he ran a personal best of 1:04:00 at the 2024 Aramco Houston Half Marathon in January. He also ran a new course record of 24:06 in winning the Sunrise 8K in Simpsonville, SC.
While residing in Greenville he was employed by Joy Real Estate, as part of GTC-ELITE's "Adopt An Athlete" program. He also worked with Blue Collar Endurance Training where he wrote training schedules for up-and-coming athletes and oversaw the development of over 15 athletes per month.
GTC-ELITE Director/Coach Mike Caldwell commented, "From our program's beginning, our mission has been to develop young adult athletes not only in their running careers, but also in life development. Karl only spent a year in our program, but we have seen him develop and mature as a person and most importantly discover and define his career interests. He deeply cares about running and we look forward to seeing him continue to learn and apply his knowledge with his collegiate athletes."
Karl (center) with teammates Jason Weitzel (left) and Jack Mastandrea (right) after Peachtree Road Race 10K in Atlanta
Karl's Performaces with GTC-ELITE
Greenville Track Club-ELITE was established in 2012 and is in its second decade as a post-collegiate, Olympic-development program. The program developed and produced one participant for the 2024 Olympic Games marathon in Paris, four qualifiers for the 2016 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Los Angeles, one qualifier/participant for the 2019 Pam American Games Marathon in. Lima, Peru, three qualifiers/two participants for the 2020 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Atlanta, GA, one qualifier and participant in the 2021 USATF Olympic Track & Field Trials in the 3000m Steeplechase and three qualifiers for the 2024 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Orlando, FL. The program's runners set four South Carolina State road race records in 2020 (5K, 15K and Half Marathon--twice) and three (15K, 10-Mile and 20K) in 2021. GTC-ELITE also produced the South Carolina Men's 2020 Long Distance Runner of the Year.
The program is sponsored and supported by the 52-year-old Greenville Track Club, ASICS, Joy Real Estate (Adopt an Athlete partner), generous individual contributors and partnerships with Performance Therapy, Carolina Spine and Rehab, Roll Recovery products, FinalSurge (on-line training log), ElliptiGO, NormaTec Recovery Boots, Cocoa Elite recovery products, UCAN energy products, Coach Bob Williams Pace Calculator, the DorsiFlex (stretching device), the MOBO board (balance & mobility), On Pace Wellness (nutrition coaching) and LEVER Movement (treadmill body weight support). The club is a proud and active member of both the Road Runners Club of America and USATF.
The program is sponsored and supported by the 52-year-old Greenville Track Club, ASICS, Joy Real Estate (Adopt an Athlete partner), generous individual contributors and partnerships with Performance Therapy, Carolina Spine and Rehab, Roll Recovery products, FinalSurge (on-line training log), ElliptiGO, NormaTec Recovery Boots, Cocoa Elite recovery products, UCAN energy products, Coach Bob Williams Pace Calculator, the DorsiFlex (stretching device), the MOBO board (balance & mobility), On Pace Wellness (nutrition coaching) and LEVER Movement (treadmill body weight support). The club is a proud and active member of both the Road Runners Club of America and USATF.
