McGee Track Ready for Athletes

Dr. Paul McGee was at the Marblehead High track as an assistant in 1984 when his mother, Winthrop High track coach Patricia “Pat” McGee, and the team accomplished something that hadn’t been done in 29 years: a league championship in boys’ spring track.

It was just the beginning for the smallest school in the Northeastern Conference – Winthrop High School – who would go on and claim six consecutive titles.

Mrs. McGee was not only an incredible coach, but truly a pioneer, beginning as a volunteer coach in 1974 just two years after the passage of Title IX.

Last Friday, Coach Patricia McGee received one of the highest honors that a town can bestow on one of its residents, the naming of the track facility at Miller Field, the Patricia McGee Track. The award was a testament to her successful coaching career and the lifelong impact that she had on the athletes she coached.

Dr. McGee recalled how his father – John McGee, an accomplished track athlete and football player – and his mother, Patricia, shared a love of sports and would attend major indoor meets at the Boston Garden and other venues.

“As time went on and we got older, my brothers, John and Kevin, and my sister, Patricia – we participated in all kinds of different sports, and my parents always went to sporting events,” said Dr. McGee.

Mrs. McGee started volunteering as a track coach for the Winthrop boys and girls’ teams in 1974, just around the times when Kevin McGee and Tricia McGee were setting records for the Vikings.

Dr. McGee said his mother applied for the boys’ track head coaching position in 1980 “and she got the job as the indoor and outdoor coach.”

“She had some good athletes and some good teams, but it wasn’t until 1984 where she had quite a team and it came down to Beverly High School and Winthrop,” recalled Dr. McGee.

“The meet went back and forth and came down to the mile relay – and finally on the last leg and the final 100 hundred yards, Kenny Sirianni gradually overtook the lead at the end,” said Dr. McGee. “They won the title and the key to that was that it was the first spring track title in 29 years.”

McGee would lead the smallest school in the league to 14 NEC titles, 5 Class D state relay championships, and two state runner-up finishes. Among her athletes were a high school All-American selection, All-Scholastics, state champions, and a New England champion.

“In 2010, she retired as track coach, but that was only part of the story,” said Dr. McGee. “She was inducted into the Mass. Track Hall of Fame, the Winthrop High School Hall of Fame, and it was a testament to her accomplishments.”

Mrs. McGee always wanted a new track facility for Winthrop High School. Several years ago she helped raised funds for the cause.

Last Friday, Mrs. McGee, surrounded by her proud and athletically gifted family, received the recognition that that she never sought. “To see this track here is a testament to her perseverance and dedication and the new track came true and it came to fruition, and my family and I couldn’t be more pleased,” said Dr. McGee.

He recalled how his mother took attendance at every practice. “They were all important to her because doing what they were doing in high school was a moment in time. After that, they have the rest of their lives. So, she wanted to lay a foundation for them, being good people, of good moral character, and being dedicated, hard-working at whatever they did – whether they went to college, the work field, whatever. What was important to her was that they would continue on and be successful in their lives.”

The Town of Winthrop has extended its ultimate appreciation to the First Lady of Winthrop Track, Coach Patricia McGee, with the amazing and much-deserved honor of having the track facility at Miller Field to forever bear her majestic name: the Patricia McGee Track.