After one year as an assistant, Tony Veney has been promoted to Head Coach of the Chapman University track & field and cross country programs for the 2025-26 school year.
"I am truly honored and excited to accept the position of Head Coach. I want to thank the leadership, and staff for believing in my "Panther" vision, culture, and commitment to this program," Veney said. "It's been a privilege serving as Assistant Coach, and I look forward to building on that foundation with passion, purpose, and a relentless pursuit of excellence. The future is bright, and I can't wait to get to work."
Veney came to Chapman in 2024 as an Assistant Coach under Interim Head Coach Barron Maizland and made an immediate impact on every facet of the program.
"We are very fortunate to have this caliber of coach already on our staff and ready to step in a take the lead for our track &field and cross country programs," commented Associate Director of Athletics Doug Aiken. "Coach Veney is highly regarded and sought after for his expertise within the international track and field community and we're excited for our student-athletes to continue to benefit from his leadership in this new role."
 In his one year on campus, the Panthers' women's track & field team placed second – by less than five points – in the SCIAC for the second year in a row. The men's team also placed third for the second in a row. He helped Mason Fara and both women's relays make their way back to the NCAA Division III Championship with Fara earning his first career All-American honor.
His success at Chapman is just the latest in highly successful coaching career. Veney's four decades of coaching experience have spanned nearly every level of the sport. He has coaching experience at all three levels of the NCAA, as well as experience at the community college and high school levels. He has also trained athletes for national and international competitions.
As a USATF Level I-II-III instructor with a Master of Coaching certificate, Veney is a renowned voice in the world of track & field. He was awarded the Fred Wilt Coach/Educator of the Year Award in 2017 by USA Track & Field.
Veney's most recent coaching stop was the Head Coach at Antelope Valley College. Prior to Antelope Valley, Veney was a coach for the Chinese National Team, leading successful sprinters and relay teams prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. He was the Head Coach at Ventura College for 10 years and has previous coaching stops at UCLA, North Carolina A&T, Portland State and Oregon.Â
He has coached numerous All-Americans and national champion sprinters. As a collegiate student-athlete, he was a record-holder for the 800m at UCLA and a member of two NCAA outdoor track & field championship winning teams. He graduated from UCLA in 1976 and also has a master's degree in Physical Education from Azusa Pacific University.
