Delaney Rasmussen

Delaney Rasmussen, a former runner at Northern Arizona University, was named the head coach of the Cal Poly cross country program in August 2026. Rasmussen is also as an assistant coach for the Cal Poly track and field program, working primarily with the women's distance runners.

Rasmussen served as an assistant for the Columbia track & field and cross country programs for two years from 2024-26. In the fall of 2024, Rasmussen coached phenom Phoebe Anderson who became just the second woman in program history to capture an Ivy League individual cross country title. Anderson went on to capture second at the NCAA Northeast Regional to earn USTFCCCA All-Region honors and an individual berth to the NCAA Cross Country Championships, where she placed an impressive 26th to secure All-American honors for the second straight year.

In 2025, Rasmussen guided the Columbia women to their best finish at the Ivy League Cross Country Championships in six years, placing third as a team with two All-Ivy League Second Team honorees.

During her two years coaching for the Columbia men’s and women’s track and field teams, athletes Rasmussen aided combined to record 18 top-10 marks in school history indoors and 13 outdoors. The Lions also had seven NCAA East Preliminary qualifiers in distance events during Rasmussen’s time with the program.

Prior to Columbia, Rasmussen spent the 2023-24 season at UCLA as an assistant coach for the track & field and cross country programs. While working with the men’s and women’s distance teams, she helped Mia Kane win the Pac-12 title in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and Michael Mireles finish as the Pac-12 runner-up in the 5,000-meter. Additionally, Rasmussen aided Bruin athletes to eight top-10 marks in UCLA school history between indoor and outdoor track.

Rasmussen, a Folsom, California native, began her coaching career at Sacramento State in July 2022 as an assistant coach for the men’s and women’s track & field and cross country teams. In her one year with the program, Rasmussen helped 10 women and four men crack the Hornets’ all-time top-10 lists. She also guided athletes to podium finishes in the 800 and 4x400 relay at the Big Sky Conference Championships. By the end of Rasmussen’s time at Sacramento State, she was promoted to Associate Head Cross Country Coach in the summer of 2023.

Prior to coaching, Rasmussen was a distance runner at Northern Arizona from 2017-22, helping the Lumberjacks capture 11 Big Sky Conference Championships between track & field and cross country during her time there. She competed at the NCAA Cross Country Championships twice, placing 44th at the national meet in 2021 to help NAU finish 11th as a team. On the track, she qualified for the NCAA West Preliminaries twice in the 5,000.

Rasmussen earned her bachelor’s degree in biomedical science with minors in chemistry and business from NAU in May 2020. She went on to receive her Master’s of Education in Human Relations and a Graduate Certificate in Ethnic Studies from NAU in May 2022.