The COaches
John TrautmanN
John Trautmann grew up in Central Valley, New York. At age fourteen he stole the national age group record in the 1500m in 4:03 and the national high school record in the 3000m only three years later to Steve Prefontaine’s record. Trautmann hasn’t stopped since those younger days.
At Georgetown, he was a two-time NCAA 5000m champion and by 1992 he was crowned the Olympic Trials 5000m champion. Unfortunately, due to a toe injury, he was unable to advance to the Olympic finals in Barcelona.
Trautmann took a break from running to become a Wall Street credit trader until 2015. When Trautmann returned to running, he swiftly took down his age group’s (45-49) mile world record in 4:12.
In 2016, Trautmann started his coaching career with NYNJTC’s team with coach Frank Gagliano and Tom Nohilly. He is also New York University’s men’s middle distance/distance coach.
Today, John Trautmann is the Co-Founder and Coach of Empire Elite Track Club.
Lenny Diaz
Lenny Diaz grew up in Newburgh, New York, where his passion for middle-distance running quickly evolved into a lifelong commitment to the sport. As a competitive athlete, Diaz competed at both the Division I level at the University at Albany and the Division III level at SUNY Cortland, earning multiple All-Conference honors and gaining firsthand experience in the demands of collegiate athletics.
But Diaz’s impact on the sport extends far beyond his own racing career.
After transitioning into coaching, he quickly established himself as a rising leader in athlete development. He has worked with youth, high school, collegiate, and professional athletes, building programs centered on long-term growth and high performance. As Assistant Coach and Manager at Empire Elite Track Club, Diaz oversees athlete recruitment, team operations, and the development of elite competitors.
He is also the Founder of the Speed Endurance Project and CEO of Upstate Elite Track Club, where he has developed national champions, state champions, and multiple national record holders.
THE COACHING MANIFESTO
We are committed to our athlete’s evolution of excellence and mastery of sport.
Our approach is based on each athlete’s current unique situation, their history, and where they want to go.
Athletics, like life, is about balance. We seek to find the balance in each athlete, physiologically and psychologically.
We are committed to understanding the latest research in science, psychology, technology, and methods to support our athletes.
We believe an athlete’s progression is about small, incremental gains.
We will not leave any stone unturned, we are looking at the latest emerging journals, research, tech, but we also rely on our extensive experience and history in the sport.
We don’t chase fitness or times. We let the process happen organically.
PHILOSOPHY
“Let running happen. Don’t chase it. Sit back and put in the work. Be in the moment. Don’t look at the future or the past. The past, that’s been done before. One interval at a time.”
- John Trautmann
“We are committed to the continuing our evolution of excellence; an evolution of our craft. We aren’t striving for perfection. Perfection has finality. As masters have said before us: ‘The painting is never done.’”
-John Trautmann
“When you’re out racing, you learn about yourself. You can either back off or push through. You are going to find something about yourself through this sport.”
- John Trautmann