Paul Zalewski

Paul Zalewski is in his second season as an assistant coach with the Purdue track & field team in 2025-26 working with the jumpers. He came to the Boilermakers after 11 seasons as an associate head coach at Virginia Tech.

2024-25
In his first season with the Boilermakers, Zalewski guided Praise Aniamaka to First Team All-American honors after a fifth-place finish in the triple jump at the NCAA Indoor Championships. Aniamaka also won the first Big Ten indoor triple jump title of his career with the No. 2 jump in school history (16.29m).

Chidozie Kalu, in his only meet of the season, entered Purdue’s indoor program rankings at No. 9 in the triple jump (15.68m). The performance earned him Big Ten Field Athlete of the Week honors on Jan. 15.

Before Purdue
Zalewski coached numerous All-Americans and ACC medalists during his Virginia Tech tenure, which came after an eight-year run at East Carolina. He has been a part of conference-championship squads both as a coach and as an athlete.
 
In 2022-2023, Zalewski led his jumps group to five All-America finishes, four ACC gold medals and four school records. Victoria Gorlova was named the ACC Most Valuable Field Performer at the indoor championships on her way to a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Championships. Zalewski’s jumpers broke school records in the long jump, triple jump and decathlon, and his high jump and triple jump squads were ranked second and third nationally.
 
In 2021-22, Zalewski coached his athletes to an ACC gold medal and All-America honors indoors in the triple jump, a pair of silver medals outdoors and an 11th-place finish at the NCAA Championships in the heptathlon. School records in the long jump, triple jump, heptathlon and decathlon all fell during the season, as one of Zalewski's athletes was bestowed with Most Valuable Performer honors at the ACC Championships.
 
Zalewski's jumpers and combined event athletes totaled 23 points at the ACC Indoor Championships in 2020-21 to help lead the Hokies to a team conference title. Four medals were won, and school records set during the season included the decathlon, heptathlon and long jump. Second team All-America distinction concluded the season outdoors.
 
The ACC Field Most Valuable Performer in 2018-19 was awarded to one of Zalewski's athletes. Virginia Tech won its first decathlon ACC title, with a school-record mark after a silver medal in the heptathlon. Medals also included two in the triple jump and another in the decathlon, while long jump and triple jump school records also were set during the campaign.
 
In 2017-18, the Hokies finished fifth at the NCAA Championships in the triple jump. Zalewski's first team All-American broke the Tech records for both the long jump and triple jump indoors and outdoors, winning three gold medals at the ACC meets.
 
Zalewski made a quick impact at Virginia Tech, as his second season, in 2014-15, featured an ACC champion in the triple jump with a school and conference record. Before being named the ACC Field Athlete of the Year, Zalewski's triple jumper placed fourth at the indoor national championship meet.
 
Prior to his time at Virginia Tech, Zalewski coached at East Carolina from 2005-13. He helped guide his athletes to two All-America honors, seven individual Conference USA titles and a women's team title in 2012, the first in program history. In his eight seasons, Zalewski coached sprints, hurdles, jumps and combined events.
 
As an athlete at Cortland, Zalewski won four SUNY Athletic Conference individual championships. He helped his team to three SUNYAC titles and two Eastern College Athletic Conference crowns. He also was a seven-time All-ECAC awardee.
 
Zalewski graduated from Cortland with a bachelors degree in kinesiology and exercise science and received his masters degree in biomechanics from East Carolina. Along with coaching at ECU, Zalewski served as degree director for the bachelor’s degree in sports studies and taught classes in sport management, sport sociology and coaching theories.