Steagall Announces Retirement from Competitive Running

Austin Steagall

ASICS Greenville Track Club-ELITE's Austin Steagall is retiring from competitive running and racing. The Gaffney, SC, native has been with the post-collegiate, Olympic development program since July of 2016 following his graduation from the University of  Mt. Olive in North Carolina. Steagall earned All America honors while competing for the Trojans and was the 2016 runner-up in the 3,000-meter Steeplechase at the NCAA Division II national championships. 

During his time with ASICS GTC-ELITE, Steagall earned such honors as the 2017 RRCA South Carolina State 10K Champion and 2018 RRCA South Region Road Mile Champion and also placed 21st at the 2017 USATF 5K Road Championships in New York CIty. He won 17 of the 42 competitions he entered and did not lose to another South Carolina runner in the 15 SC road races he ran.  

Steagall ran personal bests in the Mile - indoor (4:05.94), Road Mile (4:12), 3,000m - indoor (8:04.45), 3,000m Steeplechase (8:50.58), 5,000m - indoor (14:08.68), 5,000m - outdoor (13:58.14), Road 5K (14:14), Road 8K (22:59), Road 10K (30:08) and Half-Marathon (1:08:58). 

"We will miss having Austin in our program, but life moves on and he believes that it is time for him to retire. Without the passion and competitive drive, there is no need to continue at this juncture. We experienced both the up times and the down times with him and watched him develop not only as an athlete, but grow as a person," commented Director/Coach Mike Caldwell. 

Steagall summed up his thoughts, " I want to thank, from the bottom of my heart, Greenville Track Club ELITE and all associated for the amazing opportunity that I was given. My time spent here will be cherished forever. You all made it possible for me to take my talent to the next level. I want to personally thank Coach Mike and Coach Laura for their hard work and dedication to the program. They both have helped me grow into a better athlete, and more importantly, a better person. Retiring was by far the hardest decision I have had to make. I will miss both competing and the team. I wish all current and future athletes with GTC-ELITE the best of luck in their careers."

GTC-ELITE was established in 2012 and produced four qualifiers for the 2016 USA Olympic Trials Marathon in Los Angeles. The post-collegiate, Olympic development program is sponsored by ASICS, the 46-year-old Greenville Track Club, ScanSource, Joy Real Estate,   generous individual contributors and partnerships with Performance Therapy, Carolina Spine and Rehab, Boston Bill Sunglasses, Roll Recovery products, FinalSurge (on-line training log), The ATI Running Academy, ElliptiGO, NormaTec Recovery Boots, Cocoa Elite recovery products, Stryd Running, DorsiFlex and Synergy Performance (mental performance).  The club is a proud member of both the Road Runners Club of America and  USATF. ​ 

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