John Curtin joined Emory University as cross country coach at the start of the 1985-86 school year. His belief in individualized training programs has resulted in athletic and academic success for his student-athletes within a team concept.

The latest proof of his excellence is six NCAA Division III men's regional titles from 1999 to 2004 and eight overall. His women's teams won 13 consecutive regional titles and made 13 straight appearances in the NCAA national championships from 1991 to 2003, highlighted by a best-ever finish of seventh place at the 1997 championships. All totaled, his women's teams at Emory have earned 20 trips to nationals.

His men's teams have made 12 appearances at the national championships highlighted by a 12th-place finish in 1986 and 16th place effort in 2003.

In 1992, Curtin guided the Emory women's and men's cross country teams to the NCAA national meet, the first time in school history that both teams went to the nationals in the same season. That feat was repeated in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2007, 2008 and 2009.

Curtin was named NCAA regional men's cross country Coach of the Year in 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003 and 2004 and women's cross country Coach of the Year by the United States Track Coaches Association in 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005 and 2006. He was named men's Region Coach of the Year by Southregionrunning.com in 2002, 2003 and 2004.

In his 27 years at Emory, Curtin has coached 13 cross country All-Americans, 214 all-region performers and 91 all-conference honorees. Twice, he and his assistants have been honored by the University Athletic Association as its cross country "Coaching Staff of the Year."

Prior to Emory, Curtin was the head men's cross country and track and field coach at Simpson College (Iowa) from 1979-85. He also coached the Simpson women's cross country and track teams for two years. In 1995, Curtin was inducted into Simpson's Sports Hall of Fame.

He is the track and field director for the Atlanta Track Club, a member of the Georgia USA Track & Field (formerly The Athletic Congress), and has served on the NCAA track and field committee. For a number of years, Curtin has coordinated the invitation of elite runners for Atlanta's "Peachtree Road Race," one of the world's largest 10,000-meter race.  From 1992 through 2009,  Curtin served  as a television commentator for the Peachtree race for which he won a regional.Emmy award, along with others members of the broadcast crew, for "Outstanding Achievement in Live Sports Programming."

In 1991, Curtin received his highest TAC honor when he was selected as head coach for the USA Women's National Ekiden Team that competed in Yokohama, Japan. He spent the spring and summer of 1996 as the assistant competition director for track & field at the Atlanta Olympic Games.

Curtin is a 1974 graduate of Drake University (Iowa) and earned his master's degree from Drake in 1984.