Black History Month; Willy Kaul (’21)
OSHKOSH, Wis.- This Black History Month, UW-Oshkosh Athletics is proud to honor our Black Hall of Famers in a series of seven stories throughout February. This campaign creates the opportunity to celebrate the achievements of our Black alumni. Our fifth story will look at what Hall of Fame class of 2021 member Willy Kaul did with the Titans and his life after Oshkosh.
Willy Kaul ('21), a Menomonee Falls native, came to UW-Oshkosh in 2004 to study graphic communications, also earning four varsity letters running on the cross country and track and field teams after graduating from Milwaukee Lutheran High School. While at Oshkosh, he earned 15 All-America nods, ran to five NCAA championship titles, was named the Outstanding WIAC Championship Track Performer at the 2009 indoor meet and currently holds four school records. He finished a program-best 24:01 in the men's cross country 8,000-meter run, holds the indoor 3,000- and 5,000-meter run records with times of 8:16.37 and 14:07.14 as well as both the outdoor 3,000- and 5,000-meter runs with times of 14:07.72 and 29:38.85.
Kaul started his career at Oshkosh with All-WIAC second team honors in cross country and his first All-America plaque as a member of the fourth-place indoor distance medley relay team.
In the 2005-06 season, Kaul finished with a single All-America nod in the outdoor 10,000-meter run with a time of 30:46.29.
After earning All-WIAC honors and finishing second in the regional meet, Kaul took fourth in the 2006 national cross country meet with a time of 26.50. During the 2006-07 indoor track and field season, he brought home two more All-America honors, with his first national championship in the distance medley with a time of 10:01.85 and a 14:47.50 finish for seventh place in the 5,000-meter run. Kaul won the 3,200-meter relay at the outdoor WIAC Championships and his sixth total All-America nod, this time in the 10,000-meter run with a time of 30:46.29, finishing fifth.
2007-08
Kaul won two events at the 2008 WIAC indoor championships with All-WIAC honors in the 3,000-meter run (8:37.95) and 5,000-meter run (14:43.73). He was named the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Midwest Region Indoor Track Athlete of the Year after the regional meet and earned his second national championship with a 14:23.43 time in the 5,000-meter run. Once the outdoor season came around, his 3,200-meter relay squad won their second-straight league title in a time of 7:43.78. He took third in the 10,000-meter run at the national meet, timing a 30:35.59 finish.
Kaul finished his career at Oshkosh after the 2008-09 season. He won the cross country conference meet in 24 minutes and 15 seconds, took second in the regional meet in 24:38 and second in the national meet in 24:32. After winning the 3,000-meter run, mile run and distance medley, he was named the Outstanding Track Performer of the WIAC's indoor meet in 2009. He was later named the Midwest Region and National Indoor Track Athlete of the Year by USTFCCCA. In the national indoor meet, he earned his 10th and 11th All-America plaques with first-place finishes in the distance medley and 5,000-meter run. Kaul ended the outdoor season with his third straight All-WIAC nod in the 3,200-meter relay, the USTFCCCA's Midwest Region Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year, a fourth place finish in the 5,000-meter run at the national outdoor meet and his 13th All-America and fifth national championship with a 30:54.56 finish in the 10,000-meter run.
Kaul kept training after Oshkosh with the hopes of running at the Olympic trials, but a chronic injury kept him from the competition. He was the manager of the Naperville Running Company from 2012 to 2015, during which they were named the 2013 Competitor magazine and Running Insight trade magazine Running Store of the Year. In 2012, he was named to the WIAC's All-Time men's track and field team, joining 13 more Titans on the 54 person team. He later moved on to Nike to work as a territory brand manager between 2015 and 2022, serving on the Black Alliance while with Nike. In February of 2022, Kaul transitioned to Pas Normal Studios to be their North America Sales and Activation Manager. Kaul lives in Chicago with his wife, Veronica.
Stay tuned to uwoshkoshtitans.com and our social media accounts for stories on the rest of our Hall of Famers. Next week, we will be highlighting Esrold Nurse ('22) and Dijouvne (D.J.) Marsh ('22).