ALBANY, N.Y. – For the five weeks leading up to the UAlbany Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2023 Enshrinement Ceremony on September 29, the Department will profile each of the four individual and one team inductee in this year's class.  Today's feature is Joe Greene.

The second inductee to the University at Albany Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2023, Joe Greene is a pillar in the history of the men's track & field program. 
 
Greene was a barrier-breaking competitor during his time at UAlbany.  Arguably the greatest individual athlete in the history of UAlbany Athletics, Greene was the first Great Dane in history to break the 50-second barrier in his signature event, the 400m intermediate hurdles.  Of the five sub-50-second 400m hurdles performances in UAlbany history, Greene holds four.  His success in the event extended as far as the NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships, where he twice placed fourth overall, in 2007 and in 2009, the highest-ever finish for a Great Dane.
 
At the time on his enshrinement, Greene holds outright or has contributed to six UAlbany varsity program records, two UAlbany freshman class records, two UAlbany meet records, and one UAlbany facility record.  Greene won 11 individual and relay events in his career at America East Indoor and Outdoor Championships, and earned All-Conference accolades 14 times.  Over the course of his career, Greene scored a total of 112 points at conference championship meets, the second-highest total in program history, and recorded seven America East Championship meet record performances, of which two remain unbroken.
 
In addition to three USTFCCCA All-America honors, Green is a three-time America East Outstanding Track Performer, a two-time America East Outstanding Rookie, and won the Coaches' Award, recognizing the highest individual point-scorer at a championship meet, once.  He further earned America East Men's Track Performer of the Week honors on 10 occasions.
 
Following the conclusion of his collegiate career, Greene moved on to compete professionally.  He previously represented Team USA in 2006, earning Junior All-America honors and competing at the World Junior Championships in Beijing.
 
Roberto Vives, UAlbany's Director of Track & Field and Cross Country, recalls Greene's significance to the program:
 
"Joe was arguably the best male track & field athlete in UAlbany history.  He was a fierce competitor who would find a way to win as well as lead the team to championship titles.  Joe was the first to win the very difficult 400 meter and 400-meter hurdle double at the America East Conference Championship.  This was a testament to his commitment to excellence and his strong desire to challenge himself.  This Hall of Fame recognition is well deserved, and I am happy for him as his family."
 
Todd Wolin, former Associate Director of Track & Field and Cross Country at UAlbany, nominated Greene and oversaw his hurdle development:
 
"When I started at UAlbany, Joe was a sophomore and I coached him on his hurdle form on Mondays.  He worked extremely hard to improve his technique.  He never missed a practice and continued to improve to the point where he was able to compete in the high hurdles.
 
But the main thing with Joe was that he was a team player.  At the indoor conference championships his sophomore year, he injured his hamstring on the first lap of the 400m final.  He limped around the track for the remainder of the race to finish fifth and score points for the team.  He could have so easily stepped off the track and no one would have thought twice about it.  A true team player."
 
Junior Burnett, UAlbany's short sprints coach and one of the program's greatest sprinters, was a teammate of Greene's:

"Joe was a true Great Danes, and someone you enjoyed battling for and with at meets.  He never had the word 'quit' in his vocabulary.  Not in practice or in competition.  He was the hardest worker in practice.  I remember our first 4x400m relay victory at IC4A Championships.  It was Joe's 'never quit' mentality that got us that one."

The enshrinement ceremony for the Hall of Fame Class of 2023 will take place on September 29 starting at 6:00 pm at the Crowne Plaza-Desmond Hotel in Albany.  Cocktail hour will begin at 6:00 pm followed by a buffet dinner with the induction program at 7:30 pm.  The event is open to the public, and tickets for attendance are $75 for adults and $50 for children under 12.  Registration for the evening is available HERE.