Jan Merrill-Morin has a different way of framing her successes now.

A former Olympian and world record-holder in track and field, Merrill-Morin, a Waterford resident and current track and cross country coach at Old Saybrook High School, uses those world-class competitive experiences to make her a better coach.

“I use all that to help the kids,” said Merrill-Morin, who will receive a Gold Key on Sunday from the Connecticut Sports Media Alliance. “I really do think that having a running career and going into coaching, I have a big foundation.

“I’m always learning and moving ahead that way. Whatever I did, that doesn’t make you a good coach. That’s what I’ve been working on the last 35 years.”

Merrill-Morin was a finalist in the 1,500 meters at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, finishing eighth, qualifying with an American record of 4:02.61 in the semifinals. She earned gold medals at the 1975 (1,500 meters) and 1979 (3,000 meters) Pan Am Games and won 11 U.S. championships (six in outdoor track, three indoor and two in cross country).

Merrill-Morin is a 1974 graduate of Waterford High School and a 1979 graduate of Connecticut College; she is in both schools’ athletic halls of fame.

She didn’t begin running until her freshman year at Waterford, though, where she also played field hockey and competed in the sport that was her first love, swimming.

Merrill-Morin quickly developed into the preeminent middle distance runner of the era, featured in the Feb. 26, 1979 issue of Sports Illustrated, all of which she maintained while remaining understated.

“I knew it was special because a lot of people were paying attention to me,” Merrill-Morin said. “It moved so quickly. It was a growing experience and it was fantastic. But wherever you went, China, the Soviet Union ... you’re there to train and get ready for your competitions.”

She has coached at the collegiate level, including Rutgers, Coast Guard Academy, Conn College and Mitchell College, as well as her longtime affinity for coaching high school students.

Merrill-Morin is the head boys’ indoor and outdoor track coach at Old Saybrook and the assistant in cross country.

“When I did all that stuff, the running and training and stuff, I never stepped back and looked at what I did,” said Merrill-Morin, whose husband Jeff Morin is also a longtime track coach. “I look at it now, ‘How do I maybe use a little bit of that here?’

“I read a lot of books, every summer I read different things about (coaching). You’re a listener and a learner. It’s not the same as crossing the finish line and winning a national title. But if a relay (that you’re coaching) goes and does their best time at the end of the year, that’s fulfilling.”

Making himself heard

Bill Glenney is in his 21st season as the Ledyard boys’ soccer coach, with the Colonels off to an 11-1 start.

It was about 13 years ago that he started another career, purely by accident, when athletic director Jim Buonocore asked him to serve as the clock operator at the school’s basketball games.

Glenney had no idea that task included announcing the starting lineups.

Glenney has since announced high school games for various Eastern Connecticut Conference tournaments, for the Mystic Schooners and three games this summer for the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun at Mohegan Sun Arena. Glenney recently served as the public address announcer for The Day Volleyball Invitational, also at Mohegan Sun.

“I really do love it,” said Glenney, who is thankful to Buonocore for introducing him to the new vocation. “It’s fun and allows me to stay involved in more athletics. I think I’ve done a good enough job for enough entities that local ADs, schools, teams know I can do a professional job and mix in music and entertainment as needed.

“I’d take the Connecticut Sun job tomorrow if they asked. ... As a fan, I want the fans to enjoy themselves and I think a PA guy is a big part of the fan experience.”

Just don’t ask Glenney how he sounds.

“What’s funny is I have no idea what I sound like because I don’t hear myself,” Glenney said. “And I hate microphones.”

Leading off

The first ECC championship to be contested for the fall season will be cross country, beginning at 1:30 p.m. Thursday at Norwich Golf Course.

East Lyme’s boys’ and girls’ teams will defend their titles from 2022, with the boys taking their fifth straight championship last season and the girls winning their sixth in a row.

Waterford junior Avery Maiese will also defend her individual title, winning the girls’ race last season in 20 minutes, 29 seconds over the 3.1-mile course.

Other top returnees are St. Bernard sophomore Helena Coury (third, 21:03), Lyman Memorial sophomore Hazel DeLucia (fifth, 21:14), East Lyme senior Aranza Torres (sixth, 21:26) and Ledyard junior Kate Littler (seventh, 21:36).

There will be a new boys’ champion, with 2022 winner Ryan Gruczka now running at Northeastern University. Top returnees include East Lyme junior Sean McCauley (third, 16:52) and Woodstock junior Christian Menounos (fourth, 16:56).

v.fulkerson@theday.com