OUR COACHES

Bryan Carrel

Founder/Head Coach

Bryan Carrel just completed his 20th season as a volunteer coach with the Illinois Men's and 18th with the Illinois Women's track and field teams, working exclusively with the pole vaulters. He started offering club opportunities in Terre Haute in 1994. Prior to his time at Illinois Carrel coached at Indiana State and Central Michigan as the pole vault and jumps coach. A four-time national qualifier in the pole vault during his collegiate career at Indiana State, Carrel is still the ISU outdoor school record holder in the event and was ranked among the top pole vaulters in the country during both his prep and collegiate careers. Carrel is a 1996 graduate of Indiana State with a degree in education. Prior to his enrollment at Indiana State, Carrel spent four years with the United States Marine Corps and is a veteran of the Persian Gulf War. In addition to his coaching duties, Carrel is employed at Gill Athletics specializing in pole vault equipment. 

Katie Strauss

Hurdles/High Jump

Coach Katie has been competing in track since 2010 and continues to date. She competed in college at the University of Cincinnati as a heptathlete which includes the events: 100H, high jump, Shotput, 200m, long jump, javelin and the 800. Post collegiately she still competes in the heptathlon and the decathlon, which adds to the above events with the 100m, 400m, 1500m, pole vault, and discus. She won the (unofficial) US women’s decathlon championships in 2023 and took 2nd at the (official) Women’s World Decathlon this past August (2025). She is a currently sponsored athlete. Her personal bests for the events she coaches are:

100h: 14.05 (wind legal) 13.97 (wind aided)

Hj: 1.72 (5’7.7”)

LJ: 5.65 (18’6”)