Victor Thomas brought more than incredible success in track & field to Lincoln (Mo.).
Fourteen national team titles in NCAA Division II women’s track & field stand out, as do more than 140 individual national titles and 950 All-America honors, but Thomas – a native of Jamaica who is affectionately known as “Poppy” – values the entire student-athlete experience.
“I remember I had this athlete who, when he came, he was struggling to meet the required (2.0 grade point average) and we encouraged him and the day of his graduation, tears came to my eyes,” Thomas told the Jamaica Star in 2021. “I don’t really cry when we win championships, but to see the youths get their degrees and establish themselves in society there is no feeling like it.”
Whether it is athletically or academically, Thomas has had plenty of opportunities to celebrate. Since taking over the men’s and women’s track & field programs at Lincoln in 2002, at least one of his squads has finished in the top-10 at the NCAA DII Championships indoors or outdoors every year but one – the lone exception being 2020, a year whose national track & field championships were not held due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In addition to his 14 national titles (five indoor and nine outdoor), his Blue Tigers have finished in the top-10 nationally as a team 66 times, with 52 of those being in the top-5. His squads have been named USTFCCCA NCAA Division II Scholar Team of the Year seven times, and four athletes – Nandelle Cameron (2008), Sedeekie Edie (2016), Ryan Brown (2019) and Kizan David (2021) – have earned Scholar Athlete of the Year honors.
Prior to coaching at Lincoln, Thomas was an assistant coach for two years at Gardner-Webb, where he guided David Lloyd to the NCAA DII crown in the 400-meter hurdles.
Thomas has been named USTFCCCA National Coach of the Year six times and Regional Coach of the Year on 11 occasions, plus 11 conference Coach of the Year honors. He has been inducted to the Drake Relays (2012) and Missouri Sports (2021) Halls of Fame, the latter joining his Lincoln track & field program being inducted in 2013.