No hurdle is too high for coach of the year Jeff Horsley

For Immediate Release
Date: January 24, 2019
Contact: Tori Parks (208) 991-7987
Email: media@simplotgames.com

No hurdle is too high for coach of the year Jeff Horsley

Pocatello, Idaho – Simplot Games continuously brings outstanding track and field athletes to Holt Arena, but behind every athlete is a coach who motivates, guides, and invests time and energy in each competitor. Every year, Simplot Games recognizes a coach who goes above and beyond in their coaching duties. This year is no exception as Coach Jeff Horsley will be recognized as the Simplot Games 2019 Coach of the Year.
Horsley grew up and went to school in Soda Springs, Idaho. It was while attending Idaho State University that his passion for teaching grew. He returned to his alma mater, Soda Springs High School, shortly after. Over the course of 21 years, Horsley has taught biology, anatomy, and physiology, as well as coached basketball, cross country, and track.
Though Horsley has coached for almost a quarter of a century, his love for coaching stemmed from his own involvement in sports.
“I got involved in running because, for the most part, it is a measure of what you do and not what a coach, referee, or someone else decides,” Horsley said. “Track and cross country are great barometers of effort and work; you get out of it what you put into it, and at the end you know where you stand.”
Horsley takes his coaching position very seriously, and understands the impact he can have on athletes.
“The impact you can make on the life of an athlete is something that should not be taken lightly,” Horsley said. “I enjoy watching the growth of athletes doing things they never thought possible.”
The relationships that Horsley has made in his 21 years of coaching are something that he treasures. He still stays in contact with former athletes and students.
It is through the athletes that Horsley has coached, and his own personal experience as an athlete, that he has seen how boundaries can be broken. Though Horsley knows that there are certain limits, he believes in pushing these limits, and helping athletes reach their maximum potential.
“One of the biggest things I have learned from coaching is to not put boundaries on yourself or others,” Horsley said. “Far too often we limit ourselves by what we think we can’t do rather than pushing the boundaries of what we can do. Being a coach helps destroy those limits.”
Horsley has brought athletes to Simplot Games since the 1990s and sees the Games as an opportunity to crush boundaries.
“Big school, small school—it doesn’t matter! Come lace up and see what you can do,” Horsley said. “At the end of the day, it is still all about you and if you did your best. That is all we should be concerned with anyway. Always doing our best!”
 
More than 2,100 athletes will come from across the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand to participate in the 41^st annual Simplot Games. Simplot Games remains the nation’s premier high school indoor track and field event. Sponsored by the J.R. Simplot Company since 1979, the Simplot Games are held at Idaho State University’s Holt Arena in Pocatello, Idaho.
For more information on Simplot Games, please visit our website at www.simplotgames.com. You may also contact Lisa Woodland at (208) 235-5604 or Simplot Games Media Team at media@simplotgames.com.
 
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