SOUTH BEND, Ind. – University of Notre Dame track and field assistant coach of 15 years, Adam Beltran, passed away Wednesday, September 21, after a battle with cancer. He was 46.
“It was my pleasure to work with Adam over the last 8 years,” Matt Sparks, the Hatherly-Piane Director of Track and Field and Cross Country, said. “He was such a gentle giant that truly knew how to connect with Notre Dame student-athletes. His peaceful demeanor had a calming effect on his athletes that allowed them to compete well when it mattered most.”
While Beltran’s coaching accolades and fingerprints are all over the pages of the Notre Dame record books, it was his personality and striking humor that will be remembered most. He was a beloved figure among student-athletes, coaches and anyone who spent time around the Irish program.
“I can’t count all the ways that Beltran impacted my life and my teammates’ as well,” former student-athlete Rachel Tanczos said. “He was always quick with a joke and was never afraid to tell us things as they were. There are so many memories from the 5 years he was my coach that I’ll cherish forever. In particular, the way he continued to show up for us despite actively battling cancer for the last year and a half meant the world to me and is something I’ll never forget.”
“Adam was always the friend you could count on and the teammate you wanted by your side,” Kyle Lynne Demeter, the Head Golf Professional at the Warren Golf Course at Notre Dame, said. “Adam has been a pillar of my experience at Notre Dame and I will forever be grateful for his kind, caring friendship. Adam, throughout our rotation of lunch spots over the last 15 years, perfected the eye roll and always found humor in life and in others.”
“Adam took great pride in helping in the development of people,” said Sparks. “He loved to talk about all the great things his alumni were accomplishing after Notre Dame. He also had a knack for developing walk-on athletes into elite coach contributors. A majority of his school record holders and NCAA qualifiers were walk-ons.”
Beltran helped oversee 58 NCAA East Preliminary Round qualifiers between men’s and women’s shot put, discus, hammer throw and weight throw, and for the throw events in the men’s heptathlon and decathlon and the women’s pentathlon and heptathlon. During his time at Notre Dame, Beltran coached 11 NCAA Qualifiers.
“While Adam was quiet and preferred to…