DAVE JOHNSON ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT AS FRANK DOLSON DIRECTOR OF THE PENN RELAYS

PHILADELPHIA – Now into his 26th year overseeing the world’s oldest and largest track & field relay competition, and more than 30 years on staff, Dave Johnson has announced his retirement as the Frank Dolson Director of the Penn Relays.

Johnson, who has been in the position since December 1995, will stay on through the 2021 Relays—scheduled for April 22-24—but in a reduced capacity.

 
“Dave has left an indelible mark on the Penn Relays during his more than three decades of leadership of this beloved relay carnival,” said Dr. M. Grace Calhoun, the T. Gibbs Kane, Jr. W’69 Director of Athletics and Recreation. “As the longest-tenured Director of the Penn Relays during its 126-year tenure, his appreciation and love for the event is unrivaled.

“He has continued to ensure equitable access for all competitors, and the introduction of advanced technology and the highest level of competition have grown the event significantly. Throughout his career, he has shown sincere care for the sport of track and field, the Penn Relays and the University of Pennsylvania. We will dearly miss Dave in this role but look forward to his continued guidance and involvement in the years ahead.”

 
Johnson’s tenure as Penn Relays Director—the longest since the event began in 1895—saw the modernization of the meet through technology. The use of technology, both during the application process and on the race days, has allowed the Relays to welcome more athletes and teams than ever before, to the point that these days approximately 15,000 athletes run on the Franklin Field track every Relays weekend.

Johnson’s tenure also saw the introduction of the “USA vs. The World” races that take place on Saturdays of Relays weekend. This has allowed Relays fans to cheer on some of the biggest names in recent track history as the lineups have usually been full of Olympic stars past, present and future.

The Penn Relays became the first institution inducted into the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame in 2011, and in 2019 it was the only American location honored with the prestigious International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) World Athletic Heritage Plaque in just the Plaque’s second year of existence. The IAAF awards the Plaques “for an outstanding contribution to the worldwide history and development of the sport of track & field and out-of-stadia athletics.”

While Johnson has been in the Relays office since 1988—he was Associate Director under Timothy Baker until 1995, when he took over the Director position following Baker’s resignation—his working relationship with the Relays dates back to 1978, when he researched and revamped the historical section of the printed program. Before then, he had been an avid spectator since 1968, his first Penn Relays, when he was an alternate on his high school’s mile relay team. He has proudly attended all but one Relays since that day, missing only the 1972 event.

A recognizable figure in the track & field world, Johnson has chaired the Steering Committee of the National Track & Field Hall of Fame since 2004 and has served as Executive Vice-President of the United States Track Meet Directors Association since 1996. He also sits on the Advisory Board of the USTFCCCA’s Bowerman Award as chair of the men’s Watch Committee since the inception of the Bowerman in 2009. The Bowerman Award is presented annually to the year’s best student-athlete in American track & field.

Internationally, Johnson has served annually on the Track & Field News world rankings panel since 1982, worked as a consultant statistician for the World Athletics (IAAF) World Outdoor Championships of 1991, 1993 and 1995, helping establish and maintain the IAAF’s first historical database. He has been a member of the Association of Track and Field Statisticians since 1981.

Among his numerous honors, Johnson was inducted into the Pennsylvania State High School Track & Field Hall of Fame in 2001. He has also been inducted into the Delaware County Hall of Fame in 2011 and the Delaware County Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.

From 1979-85, Johnson lived in California working as Statistical Editor and as a staff writer for Track & Field News. As a journalist, he has covered all but one World Athletics (IAAF) Outdoor Championships since 1983, and the Olympic Games of 1984, 1992, 1996 and 2000. On the domestic level, Johnson has covered every U.S. Olympic Trials or Outdoor National Championships since 1980, every NCAA Outdoor Championships since 1980, and every NCAA Indoor Championships since 1989.

A search for Johnson’s successor will begin in January.