Al Siddons, Former Cross Country/Track & Field Coach, Retires after 35 Years

Al Siddons, Former Cross Country/Track & Field Coach, Retires after 35 Years

The Santa Ana College Kinesiology and Athletics department recently celebrated the retirement of former track & field and cross country coach Al Siddons. During his tenure as head coach at SAC, Siddons led the Dons to seven conference championships in cross country and three conference championships in men's track & field.

Siddons first came to Santa Ana College as a student-athlete in 1969 as a member of the cross country and track & field teams. He was a member of the 1970 cross country conference championship team that was also the state runner-up. Siddons returned to his alma mater as head coach of the cross country team in 1977, leading the Dons to a fourth place conference finish. He would eventually take over as the head coach of the track & field team in 1980, finishing third in conference that season.

In 1985, Siddons claimed his first conference championship in cross country with his second coming in 1987. Siddons' Dons would go on to win five more conference championships in cross country with five-straight championships from 1995-1999. In track & field, Siddons led the Dons to back-to-back conference championships in 1987 and 1988. The Dons would claim one more conference title in track & field under Siddons, winning the championship in 2000.