Chris Pio draws on over 40 years of experience and involvement as an athlete, coach, SID, official and announcer to share innovative and informative collections of institutional history, sports trivia and fun-filled athletic facts. His unique Nicknames and Mascots series, which includes four books since 2021, shares stories about the origin, evolution and relevance of college athletic nicknames and the colorful physical characters and graphic images which represent them on the field of competition.
Pio coached cross country and track & field for 27 years, the first 12 years at his alma mater – Division III Monmouth College in Illinois. He doubled as Sports Information Director in his final eight years at Monmouth and created the Fighting Scots all-time sports record books. He has also held Collegiate coaching positions at D-3 Knox College and NAIA Iowa Wesleyan University, as well as coaching his children’s junior high school cross country/track teams.
He continues to stay active in athletics as an event announcer and sports official in eastern Iowa and western Illinois. Inducted into the Monmouth M-Club Athletic Hall of Fame in 2022, his PA resume features three NCAA Division III national track and field meets and the 2024 NAIA men’s and NJCAA women’s volleyball national tournaments, as well as numerous regional and conference championships.
Pio currently works full-time as a Patient Access Specialist for the University of Iowa Health Care system and resides in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.