Bio

Big-time success is what Willy Kaul achieved as a member of the UW-Oshkosh men's cross country and track & field programs from 2004-09.

Kaul earned a pair of All-America awards in cross country with his fourth- and second-place finishes at the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III Championship in 2006 and 2008, respectively. He also was the runner-up at the 2006 and 2008 Division III Midwest Regionals and the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference champion in 2008.

Competing on the indoor track, Kaul won Division III 5,000-meter run titles in 2008 and 2009. He also was a member of the Titans' 2007 and 2009 distance medley relay teams that were crowned national champion. Kaul owns six Division III All-America indoor citations, three in both the 5,000-meter run and distance medley relay.

In WIAC competition, Kaul is the holder of five league titles – two in the 3,000-meter run and one apiece in the mile run, 5,000-meter run and distance medley relay. He was named the Outstanding Track Performer at the 2009 WIAC Indoor Championship.

Outdoors, Kaul became the first person in UW-Oshkosh history to earn four All-America performances in the same running event when he won the 10,000-meter run at the 2009 Division III Championship. Kaul's 2009 appearance at the national meet also included an All-America finish in the 5,000-meter run. He additionally was a three-time WIAC outdoor champion in the 3,200-meter relay.

Kaul was a member of UW-Oshkosh track & field teams that won Division III indoor and outdoor titles in 2009. The Milwaukee Lutheran High School graduate is the current owner of four UW-Oshkosh track & field records – indoor 3,000-meter run, indoor 5,000-meter run, outdoor 5,000-meter run and outdoor 10,000-meter run.

The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association selected Kaul as its Division III Indoor Track Athlete of the Year in 2009, Division III Midwest Region Indoor Track Athlete of the Year in both 2008 and 2009, and Division III Midwest Region Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year in 2009.

After having his dream of competing at the U.S. Olympic Trials stopped short due to a chronic injury, the 2011 UW-Oshkosh graduate moved from Milwaukee to Chicago, Ill., to work for Nike, a multinational corporation that is engaged in the design, development, manufacturing, and worldwide marketing and sales of athletic footwear, apparel and equipment.

Kaul, who continues to work for Nike as a territory brand manager, was named to the WIAC's All-Centennial Men's Track & Field Team in 2012. Kaul lives in Chicago with his wife, Veronica.