Rob Hansen joined the Highlanders family as an assistant coach with the Cross Country and Track & Field programs in June of 2016, focused primarily on UC Riverside's distance and middle-distance runners. In 2017-2018, Hansen led Weslie Pearce and Faith Makau to their 3rd and 4th All-Big West Cross Country honors in their respective careers. On the track, the women’s distance group accumulated 45 points at the Big West Championship, headlined by Pearce’s 2nd straight 3000m Steeplechase Conference title, a pair of All-Big West finishes from Makau (1500m – 2nd, 800m – 3rd) and Emily Sanchez’s debut 10,000m which landed her 2nd place and All-Big West. For the men, Heinrich Van Niekerk brought home an All-Big West 2nd place finish in the men’s 800m.
Hansen’s had 3 athletes qualify for the NCAA West Regional Meet across 4 events: Pearce (3000m Steeplechase), Makau (800m, 2:05.86 & 1500m, 4:19.28) and Van Niekerk (800m, 1:50.06). Pearce & Van Niekerk went on to earn NCAA Academic All-American status for their work on the track and in the classroom. Additionally, Ali Soto qualified for the USATF Junior National Championship (the U-20 USA National Championship) where she earned a 10th place finish.
In his first season, Hansen coached Faith Makau (3rd), and Weslie Totten (6th) to top-10 finishes in the Big West Cross Country Championships, earning them All-Big West Conference recognition. On the track, Hansen guided Totten to a 3000m Steeplechase (10:24.24) Big West title. The following day, Totten followed up that performance with a runner-up finish in the 5000m run. Her teammate, Sanchez, finished 5th. Carlos Lopez earned All-Big West accolades in his final race as a Highlander with a 3rd place finish in the men’s 800m. For her efforts, Totten earned a trip to the NCAA West Regional Championship where she finished 40th overall. In June, 2017, Sanchez (5000m, 9th) & Samantha Poliakon (3000m Steeplechase, 11th) competed at the USATF Junior National Championships in Sacramento, CA.
In total, Hansen’s athletes have set 4 school records, 13 All-Big West honors, 3 USA Junior National qualifiers, 5 NCAA West Regional qualifiers, 30 top-10 All-Time UCR marks and 2 Academic All-Americans. From 2013-16, Hansen was an assistant at the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley, where he also concentrated on distance and middle distance runners. During his time with the Vaqueros, Hansen coached Juan Wells to a spot on the 2015 NCAA All-South Central Regional Cross Country Team. Hansen guided Martin Casse to the Men's 1,500m (3:43.67) & 1-mile (4:01.04) School Records. Martin won 3 WAC Championships and was an NCAA Academic All-American. Hansen's student-athletes broke seven school records during his three years at UTRGV, and recorded 19 All-WAC performances. Hansen spent the 2012-13 season at the University of Arkansas as a volunteer assistant coach. He was on staff when the Razorbacks placed 18th at the NCAA Cross Country Championships, 4th place finish at the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships, and an 8th place finish at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. The indoor team also won the SEC Championship. Hansen gained valuable experience observing and working with multiple All-SEC, All-American, USA Qualifiers and World Team Qualifiers.
Hansen Also spent time as a GA at both McNeese State and UL-Monroe from 2011-2012. At McNeese State, Hansen coached the 400m Hurdles, 800m and 1500m athletes. Hansen led Joshua Sawe to the 2011 Outdoor Southland Conference Championship in the 800m, and Amy Talbot to an All-Southland Conference 3rd place finish in the women’s 1-mile. At ULM, Hansen was an assistant across all distance event groups.
Prior to Hansen’s collegiate coaching career, he led the Burlington Catholic Central Hilltoppers as an assistant and eventually as head coach in track & field and cross country. His team finished 2nd at the WIAA State Championship in 2010 and the women’s 4x400m relay set a Wisconsin State Meet record in Div. 4. Hansen was a distance runner at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside from 2004-09, competing in both cross country and track & field and earning All-Great Lakes Valley Conference honors in the 800-meter run. He graduated with a bachelor’s in history. Hansen earned his master’s in exercise science at the University of Louisiana-Monroe in 2012.
Coach Hansen, still an avid runner, resides in Moreno Valley, CA. He married his wife, Lucy, in August, 2015 and they’re expecting their 1st son in December. They have an Australian Shepard named Ariel.
