One of the most accomplished sprinters ever for the Union College men’s track & field team, Sean Washington overcame adversity to race into the record books on the track and serve as a key contributor to the Union football team from 2000-04.
After starting his college career by breaking a leg during his first football preseason camp, Washington came back as a sophomore and earned the first of three straight conference titles in the 55-meter dash. As a junior, he was named the UCAA (now Liberty League) Indoor Track Athlete of the Year and took fifth in the 55 meters at the NCAA Championships to earn his first All-America recognition and the first-ever for a Union sprinter.
He was even more dominant as a senior, earning a second straight Liberty League Indoor Track Athlete of the Year award and doubling up on All-America laurels, taking seventh in both the 55 during the indoor season and the 100-meter dash during the outdoor season to become the third Union track athlete to earn All-America honors in multiple events. He remains the school record holder in the indoor 55, while his outdoor 100 record stood for 10 years before being eclipsed by a margin of 0.01 seconds and his record as part of the 4x100 relay stood for 20 years as well.
On the gridiron, Washington worked his way back from a potentially career-ending injury to become one of the team’s leading receivers and kick returners during his time on campus, and capped his career by earning All-UCAA first-team recognition as a senior tailback.
Washington earned department honors in all three full seasons of competition at Union, winning the William B. Jaffe ’26 Athletic Award, the William A. Pike ’60 Award and the Harold R. Moore Male Sophomore Athletic Prize.
