A VISIT WITH SYDNEY RADIGAN

The Calvin Sports Information Department caught up with three-time national champion Sydney Radigan to recap her Calvin track and field career. Radigan came to Calvin in the summer of 2024 as a graduate student after previously running for fellow Division III member institution George Fox University where she was an All-American track athlete and earned her undergraduate degree. Radigan went on to earn All-America honors six times in her two years at Calvin and was named USTFCCCA Division III Women's National Track Athlete of the Year for both indoor and outdoor track and field this year. At the 2026 NCAA III Indoor Championships, she won the national title in the 60 meter dash and took second in the 200 meters. At the 2026 NCAA III Outdoor Championships, she won national crowns in the 100 and 200 meter dashes while running on an (7^th place) All-America 4x100 meter relay.

SYDNEY RADIGAN Q & A

Q: Take us back to growing up in the Portland (Oregon) area and just getting involved in athletics. What ultimately led you to take up track and field?

A: I went to a small school outside of Portland in the Beaverton area called St. Stephens Academy. It was a small school, and they didn't have any sports teams initially. When I was in middle school, they decided to add sports and the first sport was track and field. I also played a little rec league soccer, but track and field was my only (school) option by the time I got to middle school. In high school, I think we had 50 people in entire high school. We were at 1A school which is the smallest high school division in Oregon.  I did run cross country my freshman year, but I also was playing rec soccer simultaneously.  I ended up getting injured, so I decided no more cross country or soccer.  I was just going to stick with track and that stuck for my high school career. I do want to give a shout out to St. Stephens Academy because it is a tiny little school that has produced several good athletes.

Q: You had some success in track and field at St. Stephen's, tell us a bit about that.

A: I set the 1A state record in Oregon for the 200 meters and at the time, I think the record had stood for 24 years. That was my junior year and I believe my time in the race would have placed me fifth in the bigger division 5 and 6A Division state meet. It was exciting because I had come from small humble beginnings and it was a real blessing to run like that in high school.

Q: You chose George Fox for your (undergraduate) collegiate destination. What was the whole George Fox experience like and unfortunately, I know COVID was part of that.

A: I loved my experience and the track program at George Fox. The year before I got there, the women's track and field team had won the national title. When I got there it was really cool to be a part of a great Christian school community. Something I really appreciated was just the high level of athletics performance that was happening when I first got there. It was great to be able to train with athletes that were national champions and All-Americans. One of my teammates was Sarah King. She was a dual citizen and was a part of the Summer Olympics as an alternate with the Swiss 4x400 relay team. She also won the 400 meters at the Swiss Nationals. That was a formative time of my athletic career. Having the chance to train with those amazing athletes as well as being coached under coach John (Smith) and coach Adam (Haldorson) was fantastic.

Q: So you finished up at George Fox in 2022, correct?

A: I was supposed to graduate in 2022 but because of COVID we didn't get to compete my sophomore year (2020) and then the NCAA gave us an extra year (of eligibility) for the spring of 2021. It was kind of confusing, because my senior year I decided to put off two classes for a fifth year so that I could use one of my COVID eligibility seasons and run for Fox again. After my 2022 (track season), I was dealing with some health issues and injuries that were chronic and honestly, I was suffering from some burnout. I'd been running track since the 7th grade and was burned out so I retired and hung up the spikes and thought my track career was over. I graduated from George Fox with a biology degree, worked in a lab for a year and just kind of realized that with just my undergraduate (biology) degree, I wasn't going to be able to do what I wanted to do with my career. That's how I decided to go back to grad school for public health and when I started considering going back to grad school. I had two years of track left and I wanted to use those (years) while pursuing my graduate degree. Coach Adam called me and asked if I wanted to run track for Calvin. Calvin had the public health graduate program I was looking for which helped make the decision for me.

Q: And you got married in there so I would guess it was kind of a group decision to go across the country?

A: My husband Kyle has been beyond important to me. I remember telling him, "I really think I need to go back to grad school and I think I want to run track again," and he immediately said "Yes let's do it."  He had also grown up in Oregon and went to George Fox. He was kind of looking for a reason to live somewhere else and experience something new. He was excited about moving to a different state. He's a teacher so finding work would probably work out wherever I wanted to go to school so he was super open to moving. He's been nothing but supportive. I feel blessed to have had his support."
Q: You come to Calvin and like George Fox, it's a Christian institution. Yet it's a whole new community. You knew Coach Haldorson and not too much else. What was that integration like?

A: I kind of knew that Calvin was the community I wanted to be a part of because one of my best friends from high school went to Calvin and he had nothing but good things to say about the professors and students. When I got to Calvin, it was honestly, a little bit tough at first because I'm showing up, I'm 24 years old, I'm married and in a different phase of life. On top of that, my public health program was remote (online) so I wasn't seeing my teammates in class or around campus. Thankfully the Calvin track team was so welcoming. They did not exclude me at all, even though I was a little bit different. They were all so friendly. It's a very tight knit community and they made sure I became a part of it.

Q: You've become a little bit of a mentor to some of the younger runners on the team. They look up to you and formed a bond. How would you describe that process?

A: I would agree that I have become somewhat of a mentor, and I feel really honored that some of my younger teammates look up to me. As someone who is a bit more experienced with the number of years I've been involved in track, I did try to take it very seriously and lead by example. We had an amazing group of freshmen that came in this year and also the year before. They wanted to work hard and be a part of the community. I felt like it was very easy to get along with them, answer any questions or offer any kind of support I could. I remember being a nervous freshman, joining the track team at (George) Fox and wondering how I would measure up or fit in. I did try to make sure that the freshman knew that they earned a spot on this team and deserved to be here. I had an amazing time with them, specifically the ones on our 4x100 (relay) this year. There was a moment where our 4x100 was me and three freshmen. It ended up being me, two freshmen and a fellow senior Mia (DeJonge). It was a great experience getting to know all of them and run on an All-America relay with them.

Q: How would you describe year one at Calvin as you look back?

A: Truthfully, when I showed up to Calvin, I was out of shape. I was trying to commit to working out before I arrived, but I was not as consistent as I should have been. The first practice I showed up to a preseason workout. I immediately strained a hamstring and it was embarrassing. One thing I realized right way was the desire of my teammates wanting to work hard. They were passionate and were there to do what they could do to make the team better. I really liked that. I found that the team was very motivating. Getting back into shape was a little hard and injury stuff prevented me from lifting as heavy as I wanted to lift or running as much as I wanted to run.

Q: During your first year and then again this spring, you were a part of indoor/outdoor doubles as the Calvin women swept both MIAA track titles after several years without taking the top spot. How exciting that was for the program and how do you look back on that and the fact that you've been a part of 4 conference championships here with the track and field program.

A: It was certainly very meaningful to win conference as a team because we all are very aware of how things were with the program when Coach Adam showed up.  I think the track team was around 30 people in roster size. Some of my (current) teammates were on that tiny track team. Getting to hear their experiences early on that have now turned into winning conference championships made it so much more meaningful. It was not something that was just handed to us. We worked hard for it. It was great to be a part of and I'm just thankful that I got to be here for those moments.

Q: So let's move on to indoor nationals this year. You win one national title (60 meter dash) and almost got the other in the 200. Maybe the 60 meters was a little bit of a surprise but maybe it wasn't. What are your recollections from the indoor national meet?

A: Indoor nationals was a very different experience for me. I had gone to nationals before at Calvin and at George Fox. But this year in particular, it was so different because I was the number one seed in the 200 and I think the No. 11 seed in the 60. That made for a very different experience in terms of the pressure I was feeling and the expectations I had for myself. I never even imagined I would win the 60 (meter dash) to be honest with you. It was a surprise. After the fact, Coach Adam told me that his first reaction to me winning was shock. He celebrated but his first emotion was just shock because it's never been my best race. I had never even qualified for indoor nationals in the 60 before. The year before I didn't even win the 60 in our conference so it was a huge 180 for me. I was shocked but I do feel like I was able to handle that pressure well.

Q: What helped you handle the pressure?

A: Early in the preseason, I said to myself that I was going to put everything into my workouts, my into my eating habits and my sleeping my lifestyle because was my last year and I wanted be able to compete knowing that I did everything in my control to make myself a better athlete. When I was at indoor nationals I did feel this great amount of peace because I didn't have any regrets at that point.  I was just thinking to myself that 'you know I did what I could do to be here and now I just have to give it to the Lord and see what happens' and I won the 60 and it was crazy. Then I came really close to winning the 200 meters and, you know, came up just a little bit short.

Q: But it was still a crazy impressive meet for you.

A: Thank you. I think I said this in an interview with the D3 Glory Days broadcasters….. after I broke the national record in the prelims on day one, I almost felt like the pinnacle of my whole track career in that (prelims) race and that things couldn't get too much better. I probably could have controlled my emotions a bit more there so obviously I was disappointed not to win in the finals of the 200 but my opponent (Isabel Peterson of UW-Platteville) won it fair and square. It was a good race. Overall, I was overjoyed with how indoor nationals went.  

Q: Your coaches have talked about how they have worked a lot with you on getting out of the starting blocks. What can you say about your progression with that?

A: Talking with Adam (Haldorson) over the summer, he told me I should try to put on 10 pounds of muscle in the preseason this fall. I tried hard to do that, but I think I only ended up gaining 8 pounds of muscle. I was still proud of myself for that. To get the proper start in a high-level race, you really do need a lot of power behind it. As I mentioned, during my time at Fox, I was kind of battling injuries and then again in year one at Calvin. That prevented me from lifting weights the way I needed to. After working through those injuries, I was finally able to lift the way I needed to and gain the muscle mass that was required to win. Getting out of the starting blocks is still the weakest part of my race but Adam has been my coach my entire collegiate career and has told me multiple times that this year I've had the best starts I've ever had. I definitely think that it's because I was able to work on my power cleans, squat heavy weight and do all those kinds of things it takes to do well at a national meet.

Q: When I talked to Adam on the phone after outdoor nationals, his quote to me was "when he saw you get out of the blocks in the 100 pretty much at the same time as everybody else he knew the race was pretty much over."

A: I was a little bit nervous about the 100. In the prelims the previous day, I had one of the worst starts out of the blocks of my life. That is not an exaggeration. I was nervous about doing that again, but I was told myself that "Yesterday we got the nerves out; but we're warmed up now and ready to go."  In track and field, you frequently become good friends with your competitors, especially when you race them over and over. That was true for me this year. Being able to chitchat with people I've raced before while they're holding us before our race helped sooth my nerves. I definitely appreciate my competitors for that.

Q: Anything else you remember about the 100?

A: Truthfully, I don't remember the 100 very much at all. That is usually a good thing. In my experience, if you're having thoughts during your race that's usually means it's not a very good race. I wasn't having any of those doubts or thoughts during the race. I was just running and then I crossed the finish line, and my husband Kyle was at the finish line with my coaches and teammates and they were yelling. It was really an amazing moment.

Q: And what do you remember about the 200 meters?

 A: For the final, it was my sixth race in three days. I had been training for that moment but I was feeling the fatigue a bit. It turned out fine though. The adrenaline carried me through and after that race, I honestly couldn't believe it because of how it had gone in the 200 at indoors and because it was my sixth race of the weekend. There was a lot building into that race, but I was so overjoyed when I won.  

Q: You mentioned in a post-race NCAA interview that having your teammates there with you -  those that competed - and those that were just there to root you on - brought you joy. Can you expound on that a bit?

A: A big part of the joy of track for me are my teammates. We go through a lot together at practice. In life we are all very good friends. It meant a lot to me to have my teammates there who were also competing but also the (non-competing) teammates that came to cheer us on. That was very meaningful to me at outdoor and indoor this season. It's so much fun being able to celebrate with them afterwards. Even though maybe only a few of us scored the points to take fourth, it felt like a big win for the Calvin team. We all shared in that moment together and felt everyone was a part of it.

Q: What is it like to train as an athlete under Coach Adam Haldorson? What is it about him that makes him unique?

A: I think one of the biggest reasons I've enjoyed training under him is that he balances the desire to win and be the best athlete you can be while also not idealizing it or wanting it so bad that it becomes unhealthy. He does a very good job of making sure that we are healthy people, mentally, spiritually and physically. I think that that helps us to become good athletes. You can train super hard, do all the correct things as an athlete but if you're you struggling with something outside of track like academics, mental health or your faith it's going to hold you back. He understands that we're whole people and he cares about all aspects of our lives. Because he sees us as whole people instead of just athletes, we are able to do well while not idolizing our athleticism.

Q: Getting back to academics, tell us about your master's program which is in public health.

A: Even though it is a fully remote program, I've had many professors who are very intentional about communicating with us and talking about things outside of class like our faith or current events that include public health issues. It has not felt like it's just me alone on my laptop. I've worked on quite a few group projects with fellow students and I feel like even though some of my peers live in different states or countries, I still felt like I was able to get to know them. The opportunities I've had with the public health program have been great. I was able to intern last summer with the state of Michigan which was a great experience.

Q: Tell me a little bit more about that what did with that internship?

A: I worked with Michigan's rural health office. I did some research and collaborating with them on vaccines and rates of disease happening in the state of Michigan. A lot of it was just figuring out what rural counties needed from their health systems and learning about the barriers that they face, whether it's a 2-hour drive to their nearest clinic or a financial barrier.

Q: You graduated with your master's degree last month. What's next on the docket?

A: I've been applying for many jobs, mostly in infection control roles and in hospital settings as well as various analyst roles. So far, nothing yet yeah but my husband is open to moving to wherever I find a good opportunity. We're also open to staying here (Grand Rapids).  We have a great community here. We've made so many friends and would love to stay here. We're just kind of waiting to see what the job situation looks like for me and then we'll make our next step.

Q: You're now an alumna of two schools, both of which are Christian institutions with proud athletics traditions. I'm not trying to get you to compare one to the other, but what does it feel like to be a Calvin Knight as well as a George Fox Bruin?

A: I feel so grateful for both of my experiences. They have been similar and different in many ways. The success I've had this year has made me so grateful for both communities. After nationals I received texts from old teammates and coaches from back at (George) Fox. And you know, the love and support from my community here at Calvin has been amazing. I'm just so grateful that I've had the opportunity to be a part of both communities.