Since joining the Rocket staff in 2016, Adrian Ghioroaie has made an enormous impact coaching the sprints, hurdles, relays, jumps and multi events for the Toledo Women's Track & Field program.
Ghioroaie's recruiting and coaching efforts helped guide Toledo to its second-best MAC Championship finishes in history of the program with a third-place finish at the 2018 Outdoor Championship and fourth place performance at the 2019 Indoor Championship. Shanice Williams became the first Rocket to ever win a 60m dash MAC title in 2018 and 2019. Her time of 7.37 was the fastest Canadian time in 2019. Ghioroaie also recruited and coached Atalia Lima to the program's first-ever MAC win in the pentathlon. He oversaw two school records in the 60m and 4x400m relay, 24 top-five all-time marks at Toledo in the sprints and jumps, four NCAA first-round qualifiers and one MAC Freshmen of the year award. Ghioroaie also recruited two of the most successful distance student-athletes in Toledo history, Petronela Simiuc and Semra Karaslan, and assisted with their strength and conditioning training.
Prior to arriving at the University of Toledo, Ghioroaie spent the 2014-16 seasons at Auburn University. Reviving an Auburn jumps group that was scoreless in the triple jump and long jump events at the NCAA meet since 2008, Ghioroaie's coaching impact was immediate. During this time, Auburn jumps crew developed to national level status. Marshay Ryan was twice NCAA runner up in the triple jump and a World Junior Championship finalist with the longest distance recorded by an American triple jumper, all WJC editions considered (13.60m /44`7``). Dj Smith improved over two inches to become a two time 1st team All American in the high jump, SEC Champion, and an Olympic games qualifier in Rio 2016 (2.29m / 7`6``). Ghioroaie recruited and developed another jumper to one of the best in school history, as Shawn Johnson scored in both triple and high jump at the NCAA Championships and made the Olympic Trial final. In total, four of coach G's athletes achieved 2016 Olympic Trial qualifying marks, scoring 26 NCAA and 76 SEC points. In addition, Ghioroaie's recruiting efforts produced two Auburn University school records in the women pentathlon and women javelin, and one freshmen record in the women long jump. In addition, both team MVP awards went to Auburn jumpers (Marshay Ryan, Shaw Johnson)
In 2011, Ghioroaie was voted the USTFCCA South Region Women assistant coach of the year after guiding the jumpers of Southern Mississippi track team to a 10th-place finish at the NCAA Championship, easily the best in school history. It was the best finish of a school from C-USA. Current Olympic medalist and 100m World Champion, Tori Bowie, became a double national champion in the long jump, first in any sport at the University of Southern Mississippi claiming both indoors and outdoors gold medals. Bowie also anchored USM to an NCAA Championship qualifying spot in the 4x100m. At the 2011 NCAA Championship another two female jumpers scored in the top 5 as Ganna Demidova and Ke` airra Jones finished 3rd respectively 4th in the women triple jump and the high jump. All performances were school records at the time ( 6.64m/ 21`9.5``long jump, 13.64m 44`9``triple jump and 1.83/ 6`0`` in the high jump) , enabling USM as the most dominant women jumps crew in the NCAA for 2011.
No stranger to the Mid American Conference, Ghioroaie coached the jumps at his alma mater for the 2009 and 2010 seasons, contributing to the first men's indoor MAC title in school history and two women's MAC team titles in 2009 and 2010. His athletes won women's long jump, triple jump, heptathlon, pentathlon, 400m hurdles MAC individual titles, while also producing three NCAA Championship finals qualifiers.
Prior coaching stops include Jacksonville State University and The University of The Cumberlands. Overall, Ghioroaie has coached student-athletes to 67.5 NCAA Division I points, two NCAA individual titles and 20 NCAA All-Americans.
Ghioroaie graduated from Kent State University in 2005, specializing in exercise science and sociology. At Kent State, Ghioroaie was an individual three times MAC Champion in the triple jump, contributing to a men team title in 2004 and adding 100m, 4x100 and long jump to his team scoring efforts. The 4x100 relay at Kent State that Ghioroaie was part of still holds the MAC record. The time of 39.73 was good enough to qualify the relay for the NCAA Championship in 2005.
Ghioroaie began his athletic career at the University of Texas - El Paso, where he was part of the 2002 Western Athletic Conference Championship team. That year, he was the WAC indoor champion in the triple jump and the runner-up in the long jump. He went on to place third in the triple jump at the NCAA Indoor Championships to finish the season as an All-American.
Both of Ghioroaie's parents were accomplished athletes. His mother, Gina, was a European Championship finalist in the long jump, while his father, Adrian, is a retired Olympic jumps coach for Romania. Ghioroaie lives in Toledo with his wife Alina, and daughters Amalia and Angela.
