Cross Country
- Title:
- Meet Director/Assistant Coach
- Email:
- mfairley1@liberty.edu
- Start Date:
- 09/04/2018
Now in his eighth year at Liberty, Mark Fairley is serving as an assistant coach, meet director and track & field facilities manager in 2025-26. In his assistant coach role, Fairley primarily works with the distance runners.
The women’s distance runners under Fairley’s direction enjoyed a successful 2024-25, including a Roanoke XC Invitational title and an impressive third-place Paul Short Run showing during the fall. Two of Fairley’s charges then contributed to a dominating 26-point showing in the CUSA women’s steeplechase final on the track.
This is Fairley’s fifth year as meet director, and he has also served in the roles of volunteer assistant, graduate assistant and interim assistant coach during his time in Lynchburg.
The track & field facilities manager was a new position for Fairley in 2024-25, giving him oversight of the facility operations at the Liberty Indoor Track Complex and the Matthes-Hopkins Track Complex.
Fairley has also enjoyed success as a member of Liberty’s triathlon team, earning his professional triathlon racing license after winning the Claremont EDR Race in 2019. He also finished sixth in the draft legal race at the 2022 Collegiate Triathlon National Championships. Fairley served as an assistant coach for the triathlon team in 2022-23.
Fairley arrived at Liberty on the heels of a standout career at Central College. He captured the men’s steeplechase national title at the 2018 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships as a senior, improving one spot from his national runner-up spot in the 2017 steeplechase final. Fairley earned a third All-America certificate with his 26th-place showing at the 2017 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships.
A seven-time Iowa Conference event champion, Fairley owns the school record in the steeplechase at 8:57.39. Other top marks from his collegiate career include 4:16.42 in the mile, 8:23.87 in the 3K and 14:42.67 in the 5K.
Fairley was recognized by the USTFCCCA as Central Region Men’s Cross Country and Outdoor Track & Field Athlete of the Year as a senior. He was also named USTFCCCA NCAA Division III Men’s Cross Country National Athlete of the Week on Sept. 6, 2017, following his victory at the season-opening Dutch Invitational.
Fairley, who graduated from Central College with a bachelor’s degree in exercise science and 3.825 GPA in 2018, earned numerous academic accolades as well. He was a 2018 CoSIDA Academic All-American in and was named 2018 USTFCCCA NCAA Division III Men’s Outdoor Track Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
A native of Dubuque, Iowa, Fairley was awarded an NCAA postgraduate scholarship of $7,500. He graduated from Liberty in 2020 with a master’s degree in sport management and is currently working toward a second master’s degree in biblical studies.
Fairley married the former Adelyn Ackley in July 2022.
