Dan O'Mara - Track and Field Coach - Iowa State University Athletics

Dan O'Mara

Title:
Assistant Coach
Email:
danomara@iastate.edu

Dan O’Mara completed his third season in 2023-24 as assistant coach at Iowa State during Jeremy Sudbury’s tenure as ISU Director of Track and Field/Cross Country. O’Mara coaches ISU’s throws group, and in his second stint in Ames, having been on the Cyclone coaching staff from 1992-2007 coaching throwers.

In his first season back with the Cyclones, O’Mara made strong progress with his throws group and some big breakthroughs. He helped guide Emily March through a consistent outdoor season, helping her build the determination to become the first women’s discus All-American in Iowa State history. On the men’s side, O’Mara’s work with Kevin Sakson helped guide the Estonian to the NCAA Championships in the discus and to a national title in his native Estonia.

The 2024 season continued to build on the throws group’s success as eight put up 13 top 10 program performances, with 10 of those in the top five. The men’s shot putters showed to be the best ending indoor season ranked No. 1 in the nation in the USTFCCCA Event Squad rankings averaging 60-4 (18.39m). Three school records fell as Cam Jones downed both the indoor and outdoor shot put records, adding to his one in the weight throw, while Kaitlyn Burson added to her hammer throw record taking hold of the weight throw record. His men and women combined for 27 points at indoor conference and 25 at outdoor conference.

O’Mara led Jones to a historic season in 2024 earning three All-America honors and becoming the ninth man in Big 12 history to sweep the indoor and outdoor shot put titles. Jones was one of two men in the nation to double in the weight throw and shot put at indoor nationals. The standout thrower capped his season at U.S. Olympic Trials after qualifying with his mark of 65-9 1/2 (20.05m), the first mark in Iowa State history over 20 meters.

In 2023, O'Mara led Jones to the first men's weight throw Big 12 title in Iowa State history, while Jones went on to earn All-America honors in the event. At Outdoor Big 12 Championships, Sakson took the title in the shot put while March (discus) and Zach Podraza (javelin) took silver. Two set school records; Jones in the weight throw and Burson in the hammer throw.

O’Mara spent the previous 12 seasons at UNI as the Panthers’ throws coach. O’Mara coached throwers to six All-America honors, with Darius King earning First Team All-America honors with his seventh place finish in the men’s shot put at the 2021 NCAA Outdoor Championships. King was one of O’Mara’s top pupils at UNI, claiming three All-America honors, two MVC conference titles, UNI’s indoor and outdoor school records in the shot put, the MVC Most Outstanding Field Athlete at the 2021 conference championships and a berth at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials.

Depth in O’Mara’s throwing events had been a crucial piece to UNI winning three-straight MVC Outdoor Conference Championships and back-to-back MVC Indoor Conference Championships from 2019-21. The UNI men’s throwers combined for 61 points outdoors and 37 points indoors en route to helping the Panthers win the men’s league titles in 2021.

Across his tenure, O’Mara coached Panthers to 62 entries at the NCAA West Preliminaries, 12 individual conference titles, 11 school records, six All-America honors and an all-time MVC conference record.

O’Mara’s first term as throws coach at ISU across 15 seasons at Iowa State saw Cyclone throwers earn 22 conference titles, 21 All-America honors, eight U.S. Olympic Trials qualifiers and seven school records. Among his most successful student-athletes at ISU were ISU Letterwinners Club Hall of Famers Jamie Beyer and Lisa Griebel, while ISU’s school record in the men’s indoor shot put (Beyer) which was set under O’Mara’s watch remains.

Prior to his time as a Cyclone, O’Mara served as an assistant coach at South Carolina and, his alma mater, Kansas State. As a Wildcat student-athlete from 1986-89, O’Mara earned All-America honors in the discus as a senior, finishing eighth at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. His senior year also saw him claim Big Eight titles in the discus outdoors and the shot put indoors. A K-State Track and Field Hall of Honor member, O’Mara still ranks second in school history in the outdoor discus and fifth in the indoor shot put.

O’Mara earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Exercise Science from Kansas State in 1990 and his Master’s Degree in Sports Psychology from Iowa State in 1997. O’Mara is a USATF Level 1 Certified coach in track and field, certified through the National Strength & Conditioning Association (NSCA) as a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist and AED/CPR Certified through the American Red Cross.

His wife, Denise, served as an Associate Director of Athletic Training at Iowa State and an instructor in the Kinesiology department. They have two daughters, Maggie and Ruby.