D3 North Park adds “Jumps Guru” to staff

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Track and Field names two new assistant coaches

CHICAGO, IL (October 22, 2009) –North Park Track & Field Coach, Skip Stolley, has announced the hiring of two part-time assistant coaches—Bob Cervenka and Jeff Wagner—for the 2009/2010 season.

Bob Cervenka won the Illinois State H.S. Championship in the high jump in 1976 while attending Downers Grove North High School and was runner-up in 1977. He went on to attend Eastern Illinois University where he joined the 7-foot club and graduated with a degree in physical education and health education in 1982.

After serving as an assistant track & field coach at the University of Nebraska from 1985-88, he went to South Africa where he coached at the club level until 2007. There, he established himself as a “Jumps Guru” coaching athletes who qualified for the 1999 & 2001 World Youth Championships, 2000 & 2003 African Championships, 2002 World Junior Championships, 2004 Olympic Games, and 2005 World Championships. In total, Bob has coached four male pole vaulters who jumped over 17’ 3/4”/5.20m, led by 18’ 4 1/2/5.60m jumper, Fanie Jacobs. On the women’s side, he coached 14’ 6”/4.42m vaulter Elmarie Gerryts, junior vaulters ages 16-19 who jumped 13’ 3”/4.05m, and female youth vaulters ages 12-15 who jumped 12’ 2”/3.71m.

In the high jump, Bob has coached numerous male 7-footers, led by Jacques Freitag—the 2003 World Champion in the high jump who recorded a best of 7’ 9 ¾”/2.38m. On the women’s side he coached 6’ 3”/1.90m jumper Nicollize Steyn, and two juniors who jumped 5’ 11”/1.80m.

In 2007, Bob returned to the United States and created a jumps academy, the Flight Track Club, in the Chicago south suburb of Frankfort, Ill. There, he has coached Illinois Boys All-State pole vaulter, Mike Sheetz (14’ 7”/4.45m) and the 2009 Illinois State Champion, Megan Weller (13’ 1”/3.99m).

“Adding Bob to our staff is a tremendous coup for us, says Skip Stolley. He has had extraordinary success working with both men and women and will make a huge difference in developing our jumpers at North Park and helping us to recruit in that area.”

Jeff Wagner was a member of cross country and track & field teams at Thornridge High School coached by Skip Stolley that placed in the top-three at the Illinois H.S. State Championships. After graduation, he was member of nationally-ranked teams at Eastern Illinois University, including the 1977 NCAA Division-II National Cross Country Champions. As an accounting major, he graduated with a degree in Business in 1981 then accumulated 14 hours of post-graduate work in Athletic Administration. As a post-collegiate athlete, Jeff was one of the Midwest’s top-ranked distance runners until age 31, running 2:24:46 at the 1981 Detroit Marathon and 2:25:25 at the 1982 Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, MN. During an eight-year career, he won more than 35 road races throughout the Chicago metropolitan area. Jeff then went on to found and serve as race director for Nick’s Dolton Festival 10K which, for 6 years, was recognized as Chicago’s premier 10K road race. Throughout its 6-year history, Nick’s 10K showcased numerous NCAA All-Americans, U.S. road race champions and Olympians. Its course records of 29:02 by Dan Henderson and 33:25 by Patty Murray still stand as Illinois all-time 10K road bests. Jeff’s planning, organizing, and execution of Nick’s 10K earned awards that included designation as one of “America’s Top 100 Races” by Running Times magazine, and recognition as Illinois Race-Of-The-Year, and Chicago Area Race-Of-The-Year.

As a coach, Jeff served as head track and field and cross country coach at Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights, Ill., before founding a prominent Chicago area post-collegiate running club that, over a six-year period, grew to more than 70 members. Jeff’s club produced men and women who became perennial contenders for overall and age group titles in Chicago’s highest profile road races and two qualifiers for the 2000 U.S. Olympic Trials for the Women’s Marathon.

“Jeff is very well-connected to the Illinois high school cross country and track & field coaching community and attends the area’s top meets in both sports on a regular basis, says Skip Stolley. He will make an immediate impact on our program at North Park as my administrative assistant, as a recruiter, and as an exceptional assistant coach in all areas.”
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