August 1st, 2023

James Snyder was hired as the Head Coach of Philadelphia Runner Track Club after a twelve year career as a Division 1 Cross Country/Track & Field Coach. No stranger to the Philadelphia area, Snyder is a Downingtown, Pa., native and graduate of Downingtown East High School. Most recently he served as the Head Cross Country Coach at Temple University where he spent nearly a decade building a distance program that achieved unprecedented success at the conference, regional and national level. Snyder is a USA Track & Field Level I and II (Endurance) coach and was selected by USATF to participate in the inaugural Coaches Mentorship Program held in conjunction with the 2012 Olympic Track & Field Trials. A firm believer in the importance of resistance training for distance runners, he is also a certified strength and conditioning specialist (CSCS) through the National Strength and Conditioning Association and has received the distinction of Sport Performance Coach from USA Weightlifting.  In 2016, he was selected by USATF to attend the NACAC Congress for Track & Field Coaches in San Salvador, El Salvador. Snyder graduated as the ‘09 class valedictorian from the exercise science department at George Mason University, where he was a multiple letter winner for the cross country and track & field programs. In 2012, he completed a masters degree in exercise science (strength & conditioning concentration) from Appalachian State. While in graduate school, Snyder’s research focused on sport science and distance running performance.  He has presented his work before the American College of Sports Medicine, US Track & Field & Cross Country Coaches Association and the National Strength & Conditioning Association. Snyder has also had his work published in the European Journal of Applied Physiology, Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, The Journal of Sport Science as well as the International Journal of Athletic Therapy and Training. As a student, he completed an internship with the United States Olympic Committee in Lake Placid, N.Y., and also spent three summers working for ZAP Fitness, a Team USA Distance Running Training Center at altitude in Blowing Rock, N.C. In addition to his work with the collegiate athletes, Snyder coached sub-4 minute miler Brandon Hudgins, who qualified for the 2016 Olympic Trials in the 1500m.  James is an adjunct faculty member in the Kinesiology Department at Temple University and also a Run Coach for The Lab, Philadelphia’s first all-inclusive concierge health & human performance company.

James Snyder by the Numbers

  • NCAA Division 1 Mid-Atlantic Women’s Assistant Track & Field Coach of the Year (2021)

  • 5 NCAA Division 1 All-Americans

  • 10 American Athletic Conference Track Individual Champions

  • 28 All-Conference Cross Country Runners

  • 15 All-Region Cross Country Runners