Matt DeLancey's expertise, energy and enthusiasm has made for a championship presence with the Gators for more than two decades.
His Passion for the Work is Olympian
Wednesday, July 24, 2024 | Men's Track and Field, Women's Track and Field, Chris Harry, Olympics
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By: Chris Harry, Senior Writer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Summer Olympics are appointment television for Matt DeLancey. Makes sense. As University of Florida strength and conditioning associate director, DeLancey has trained dozens of Gators (plus numerous outside athletes who come to town for his mentorship) for a total of 110 participations in six Olympic cycles over the last two decades. That number includes some of the biggest names from Games past and those about to be contested.
But when DeLancey settles down at home in front of the giant flat screen to watch his athletes race or throw or jump he isn't doing so with popcorn and a cold beverage.
There is absolutely nothing relaxing about it.
"I'm always wound up. My gut is in knots. My heart rate is elevated. I'm in the moment with them," DeLancey said. "If you don't treat it like that you're not doing your job for them. You have to be invested and the vested piece is where I get a lot of my work done. If they don't feel that investment they're not going to give you their best."
When the 2024 Summer Olympics begin Friday in Paris, an all-time high 40 athletes with UF ties -- representing 19 countries -- will be scheduled to compete over the next two weeks. DeLancey will have had a hand in training 19 of them, including 11 current Gators.
[See our comprehensive Olympic setup here; for a list of UF's 2024 Olympians, click here]
How will they fare? That, obviously, remains to be seen, but his track record suggests a number of those current and former athletes will be standing on podiums, though that's not the DeLancey standard.
"I want to see them at the pinnacle, at their very best," he said. "That might not be a gold medal. It might be just getting to the Olympics. Whatever that person's potential is capable of achieving, that's what I'm looking for." Matt DeLancey and Ryan Lochte
Here are some names and numbers on DeLancey's resume:
* Ryan Lochte, Caeleb Dressell, Grant Holloway, Kerron Clement, Conor Dwyer, Christian Taylor, Darian Townsend, Elizabeth Beisel, Bobby Finke, Will Claye, Kieren Smith, Tony McQuay, to name a few. * 22 Olympic gold medalists * 50 world champions and 23 world records
"He's been doing it for going on 25 years and still acts like he's fresh out of college with the passion he puts into every day he's on the job," said UF director of strength and conditioning Paul Chandler. "We all have our peaks and valleys, but Matt's commitment to the school and his athletes has been unwavering, which is why so many of them who have moved on and have the means to seek outside training have stayed here or come back to work with him. What he's done is extraordinary."
Added volleyball coach Mary Wise: "Everything with Matt is about passion. He's passionate about knowledge first. He's constantly growing and staying ahead of it as that world changes. He's passionate about people and relationships. And he's passionate about the Gators. It's a perfect combination."
DeLancey, 49, came to UF in 2002 and eventually was given strength and conditioning oversight of volleyball, cross country, swimming and diving, and track and field. That wasn't necessary his plan, but that's how it worked out. Good for DeLancey, great for the Gators.
Matt DeLancey locks on his athletes at a track meet.
Growing up in New Bloomfield, Pennsylvania, DeLancey's heart was on the football field. At the age of 10, when he first looked through a copy of Muscle Fitness magazine – "They put Arnold's workouts in there," he said – the son of a single parent with the built-in Keystone State work ethic was hooked. DeLancey played football at Division II East Stroudsburg (Pa.). A 6-foot-2, 300-pound defensive lineman, his name still shows up on several of the school's single-season and career lists (tackles for loss, sacks, blocked kicks). DeLancey was good enough to extend his football career by going overseas to play and eventually coach in a developmental league for NFL Europe.
Upon returning stateside, DeLancey trained athletes at Northern Illinois and Richmond before an internship brought him to UF. In the fall of 2003, freshman Ryan Lochte arrived on campus and a year later won a gold medal in the 4x200 freestyle relay (teaming with Michael Phelps) and a silver in the 200 individual medley at the 2004 Summer Olympics at Athens, Greece.
Lochte was DeLancey's first athlete to medal. An orange-and-blue conga line of medal-winners has run through Beijing, London, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo since. Paris is next.
"I love Olympic sports," he said. "That's where my heart is."
Matt DeLancey (center), flanked by current UF swim coach Anthony Nesty (left) and predecessor Gregg Troy (right), cheer on their Gators at a NCAA championship meet. [Photo by Tim Casey]
In the 20 years since Lochte, DeLancey's booming voice has become as associated with the weight room in the south end zone of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium as the Gator head logo.
"You definitely can hear him coming," said 2024 NCAA 100-meter hurdle women's champion Grace Stark. "He's been a huge part of the success I've had here and, hopefully, a huge part of the success I'll have in the future."
DeLancey has an affinity for the Marvel Universe and gave Stark the moniker "Ironheart," for the character who grew out of the "Ironman" series. The nickname works, given Stark's rally from surgery after a devastating tumble at the 2022 SEC Outdoor Championships that cost her the 2023 outdoor season. She now runs with a metal plate and seven screws in her leg. Stark's comeback (as in "Tony Stark," get it?) to win the NCAA title was followed with a third-place finish and personal-best time at the Olympic trials.
Yeah, "Ironheart" sounds about right. Grace "Ironheart" Stark [photo by Nicole Scharff]
"I love seeing people get better, it's that simple," said DeLancey, whose reputation for being demanding also comes with an empathetic streak and savvy ability to read his athletes. "I hold people to a high standard. I have been accused of holding people to too high of a standard, but I don't believe in that at the University of Florida. We're a flagship school. But beyond that, I want to get to know them as people. I'm a lot more honey than I am vinegar, but I'm loud by nature and I'm not afraid to give them tough love. That's where the line is with me."
There is no mistaking the line, either.
"I would say Matt is like the tough-loving older brother figure," Chandler said. "He definitely coaches with intensity, but is also a person who would stop everything to talk about life stuff. That's important in our world, season after season. We don't control anyone's playing time, but we get these kids away from the coaching staffs and you're going to see a lot more personal issues and have conversations that require some compassion. Matt is great with that."
His strength, of course, is building strength specific to the athlete's needs. As in plyometrics. From the vertical jumps of outside hitters (volleyball) to explosion out of (track) or off (swimming) the blocks – Note: Dressel's mind-boggling 42-inch vertical jump oftentimes gave him a 1-meter head start before the race's first stroke – DeLancey covers all bases while working in tandem with his respective coaches.
As for the relationships he has built along the way? Consider that both Lochte and Dressel thought enough of their weight-room sensei to give DeLancey one of their world-championship medals. Those illustrious pieces of hardware are prominently displayed (with personal messages) at his home office.
DeLancey believes he has two more "quads" (or Olympic cycles) in him – 2028 in Los Angeles and 2032 in Australia– but his focus right now (and the knots in his stomach) are all about Paris.
"The expectation level for myself is higher this time of year," DeLancey said. "The Olympics is the apex of their careers and there is no guarantee they'll ever get back."
He takes that pressure to heart. For 19 years, DeLancey worked closely alongside coaches from his four sports, which oftentimes made for days that went from 4 a.m. to 7 p.m. After the pandemic-shuttered spring of 2020, the Gators began streamlining DeLancey's duties and allowed him to mentor a new generation of UF strength coaches. Now his lone focus for current Gator athletes is with track and field, alongside Coach Mike Holloway.
The UF men have won three straight outdoor national championships (2022-24), upping Holloway's total titles to 14 since 2010, all with DeLancey as his weight-room wing man. The women captured the 2022 crown and finished second at last month's NCAA meet, led by 5,000- and 10,000-meter champion Parker Valby, who will join Stark in Paris after finishing second at the trials in the 10k.
"I don't think anyone thought Grace would make it, but her times just kept getting better all year," DeLancey said. "Parker? She's just an absolute beast."
The mere mention of the two puts a smile on DeLancey's face.
Anna Hall won the NCAA heptathlon for the Gators at the 2022 meet, finished second at the 2023 World Championships and is among the favorites to capture gold at the 2024 Olympics.
Hall helped key that 2022 women's team title by becoming the first Gator to win the heptathlon at the NCAA meet. DeLancey watched with pride last month as Hall, now a post-grad and coming off knee surgery in January, defied the odds and won the heptathlon at the U.S. Trials. She's considered one of the top contenders to win gold in Paris after finishing second at the 2023 World Championships at Budapest.
On DeLancey's desk rests a plaque with the following inscription:
difference maker noun a committed individual who is capable of having a significant effect with just a few words or a small act. a person who improves the lives of others. someone who inspires and motivates others to progress and bring about change.
The plaque was given to DeLancey. By Hall.
"He's been a difference-maker for me, literally building my body from scratch since I came here," Hall said. "I was a twig, but he's transformed me completely. It's been technical, it's been safe – I've never hurt myself in the weight room – and he's made me a more explosive, better athlete all while being ridiculously calm and encouraging. He's made me believe in myself."
With that, Hall reached across DeLancey's desk, gave him a smile and a fist bump before leaving the office.
Clearly moved, DeLancey shook his head.
"Ireally want her to win," he said.
When it comes time for Hall to line up – just like when all his athletes line up – DeLancey will be in the moment with her. It's the only way he knows.
