For POAM Business Agent Dan Kuhn, watching his daughter Sydney compete has been one of the great joys of being a father.
“It’s been a lot of fun being her dad,” Kuhn said. “It’s been a heck of a ride.”
That ride recently reached a new level when Sydney represented Team USA and returned home to Michigan with a gold medal.
From Multi-Sport Athlete to Michigan Wolverine
Sydney grew up competing in just about everything.
She played soccer, volleyball and varsity basketball before track became her primary focus. Dan, himself a former Central Michigan University track athlete, remembers recognizing early that his daughter had unusual athletic ability.
“She was just a natural athlete,” he said. “She excelled in all of the sports early.”
By middle school, Sydney was winning events at open track meets. By high school at Swan Valley, her range had become one of her defining strengths.
Her future University of Michigan coach Mike McGuire would eventually describe her as a “Swiss Army knife.”
“She could do anything,” Dan said.
Sydney competed at distances ranging from the short sprints through the mile, eventually concentrating on events including the 400 meters, 800 meters and 400-meter hurdles.
During her sophomore year, she made a difficult decision: leave varsity basketball and focus on indoor track.
That decision began changing the course of her athletic career.
She competed at New Balance Nationals, began attracting attention at the collegiate level and eventually earned the opportunity to compete for the University of Michigan.
An Unexpected Call From Team USA
This summer, Sydney competed at the U20 trials and finished fifth nationally in the 400-meter hurdles. Only the top two advanced, so the Kuhn family believed her Team USA opportunity had passed.
Then the phone rang.
A Team USA coach invited Sydney to join the U20 team.
“It was a shock,” Dan said. “We had not expected this phone call.”
Soon afterward, a massive package of Team USA gear arrived at the family home. Dan joked that the delivery was so large it needed a dolly to reach the porch.
The experience became much more real when Sydney stepped onto the track wearing USA across her chest.
She competed in the preliminary round of the relay, helping Team USA advance to the final with a split in the low 54-second range. The American team went on to win the final, earning Sydney a gold medal as part of the relay squad.
For Dan and his wife, watching their daughter represent the United States was equal parts pride and nerves.
“How can you not be proud to see your kid represent her country?” he said.
The Work Behind the Medal
What spectators see is the race.
What they rarely see are the years behind it.
Dan has watched Sydney move from a small high school program into Division I athletics, balancing the academic demands of the University of Michigan with training, competition, recovery and the constant work required to compete at that level.
“If people knew what goes into this, it’s crazy,” he said.
Sydney finished her most recent Michigan season on a strong note, earning Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors, winning at Michigan’s Len Paddock Open and setting a personal record in the 400-meter hurdles.
Her father believes the biggest goal now is simple: keep improving, be a good teammate and contribute to Michigan.
A Lesson Bigger Than Police Work
Sydney’s story is an athletic achievement, but Dan’s experience as a father carries another message that may hit home with fellow POAM members.
Before becoming a POAM Business Agent, Dan spent years as a police officer, including significant time working midnight shifts. His wife was a teacher, and together they worked to build a home where careers mattered, but family remained the priority.
Dan credits his wife and extended family heavily for making that balance possible.
Looking back, he believes one choice served him particularly well throughout his law enforcement career.
“Don’t let police work become your identity. Make sure you separate the two, and make sure your family life is always more important than your work life.”
Dan said he learned to “hang your uniform in your locker and go home.”
That meant having friends outside law enforcement, staying connected to extended family and recognizing that the badge was something he wore, not the entirety of who he was.
He doesn’t present that as a formula for everyone. It is simply what worked for the Kuhn family.
And years later, one of the rewards has been sitting in the stands beside his wife, watching their daughter compete for Michigan and represent the United States.
For a dad who once ran track himself, that has made for one heck of a ride.