(Legendary Coach)
The Staten Island Legend of Running and Coaching for more than 70 years. He was one of the nation’s top distance runners competing against greats of the 1950s and 60s like Browning Ross, Gordon McKenzie, Horace Ashenfelter, Ted Corbitt and others. In 1955 Welsh ran in the Boston Marathon and his fastest ever was 2:34.39 in 1962, Atlantic City. He trained Bill Jankunis, a high jumper who became Staten Island’s first Olympian since 1932, also Charlie Marsala the boroough’s first and only man to break the four-minute mile. Other New Dorp standouts coached by Bill Welsh included Bob Andrews, Larry Cimato, Steve Moore and Marty Walsh to name a few.
Staten Island Sports Hall of Famer John Tobin – “Bill Welsh was a national calibar runner who used to coach the Augies. After their practice Billy would run through the golf course to St. Peter’s campus where he would cool down with our team, go for a long run with Brother John Sieger to design workouts for both teams, then run home to get ready to teach the next day at Augustinian Academy. When I was a senior at St. Peter’s, Welsh was training for ’56 Olympic steeplechase at Curtis by running interval quarters with us on the inside and he on the outside lane with BARRIERS! He beat every guy in the distances at one time or another from Horace Ashenfelter through Fred Wilt. An incredible guy and truly a LEGEND!”
