Diljeet Taylor

Diljeet Dosanjh Taylor (formerly Mendoza; born October 5, 1977) is an American track and field coach and former runner. She is the head coach of the BYU Cougars track and field and cross country women's teams, which she coached to 2020 and 2024 national team titles. She also coaches a professional team for Nike.

Raised in California, Taylor was a NCAA Division II Women's Indoor Track and Field Championships runner-up in the 800 meters for the Stanislaus State Warriors track and field team. She coached at Menlo College and Stanislaus State before moving to Utah to coach BYU. In 2021, she became the first non-Mormon head coach at BYU in any sport for at least 50 years. Taylor has been described as an 'outspoken feminist in Mormon country'.

Early life Diljeet Dosanjh was born on October 5, 1977. She was 3rd in the 400 m at the 1994 Stanislaus County championships, running 62 seconds.

Dosanjh was encouraged to participate in high school sports, but due to Indian cultural pressure she was discouraged to compete beyond high school. She was recruited to run for the Stanislaus State Warriors track and field team, but instead took a three-year hiatus from the sport. She graduated high school in 1995 and married Enrique "Henry" Mendoza in April 1996, diverging with the wishes of her Indian parents, and worked full-time as a bank employee.

Mendoza eventually attended Stanislaus State and competed on their cross country team as a sophomore in 1999. On April 27, 2000, she was named the Turlock Journal athlete of the week for qualifying for the NCAA Division II Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championships in the 800 m. She was ranked 11th going into the championships but finished 6th in her semi-final and did not advance to the finals.

She earned her bachelor's degree in six semesters, graduating with a degree in liberal studies in the spring of 2000.

At the 2001 Bill Cosby Invitational, Mendoza set a school record of 2:20.47 in the indoor 800 meters, which she later improved to 2:16.05 Outdoors in 2001, Mendoza was 3rd in 2:11.85 at the Stanford Invitational. She set a 2:10.82 800 m personal best and qualified for the NCAA championships, but did not advance to the finals.

Mendoza was 67th at the 2001 NCAA Division II cross country West regional. Indoors in 2002, Mendoza improved her school record to 2:14.46, 2:14.02, and then 2:13.37. She was named the CCAA's track and field athlete of the week for February 25 to March 3. She posted the 3rd-fastest semi-final time at the 2002 NCAA Division II Indoor Championships, improving her school record to 2:09.97. In the finals, she improved her record again to 2:08.94 to finish runner-up behind Katerina Glosová.

In her final season of eligibility, Mendoza qualified for the 2002 outdoor Division II nationals in the 800 m, 1500 m, and 4 × 400 m relay. She won the 1500 meters at the 2002 California Collegiate Athletic Association conference championships and was runner-up in the 800 m. She ended her collegiate career as a three-time NCAA Division II All-American and as her school's athlete of the year.

She remained at Stanislaus State as an administrative assistant after exhausting her athletic eligibility.

During the 2002-03 season, Mendoza worked as an assistant to the Stanislaus State Warriors men's basketball team under head coach Mike Terpstra. The school's athletic director received a letter stating that Mendoza was sexually harassed by Terpstra, but Mendoza later testified that she was not harassed.

Coaching career Mendoza got her graduate's degree in 2004. From 2005 to 2007, Mendoza coached for the Menlo Oaks track and field team in Atherton, California. She coached the women's team to a California Pacific Conference cross country title in 2006.

Dosanjh married Cal State Stanislaus basketball player Ira Taylor, who is a Mormon. Taylor continued coaching as a new mother in 2010. She became the school's interim track and field coach in 2013, and was appointed as director of track and field and cross country in June 2013.

Taylor coached 3:52 mile runner Abraham Alvarado at Stanislaus. Also under Taylor, Courtney Anderson won a Division II national championship individually. While at BYU in 2019, Taylor coached the Mormon school's first out LGBT athlete Emma Gee, who she encouraged to be her 'best self'.

In 2019, Taylor was inducted into the Stanislaus State Warriors Hall of Fame 2020 class. She considered leaving BYU for a position to coach the Stanford Cardinal track and field team but chose to stay at BYU to support Meghan Hunter, who broke her neck in a car crash but was able to recover and win a Big 12 Conference championship over 800 m.

Taylor was promoted to head BYU Cougars cross country coach in 2021. As a Sikh, she was believed to be the first non-Mormon head coach at the school in any sport for at least 50 years.

In 2022, Taylor announced the launch of a new professional running group based in Provo, Utah called Taylor Made Elite. The group consisted mainly of BYU runners who had turned professional, and she would continue to coach the BYU school teams alongside the pro group. The group was unaffiliated with any shoe sponsor. She launched a mobile app called Status Strong in 2023 for tracking mental health in athletes.

In June 2024, Taylor was a part of Nike Athlete Think Tank, a program to provide support to female athletes. She was in the third cohort of the program with Dawn Staley, Emma Hayes, and Jenny Lang Ping. In November, she led the BYU women to win the 2024 NCAA Division I cross country championships, her second national team title, alongside the men's team which also won under coach Ed Eyestone. Taylor published a book, Believe in Her: Why Girls Need Confidence and How to Cultivate It, in July 2024.

In February 2025, Taylor signed with Nike, Inc. to coach Swoosh Track Club Provo, a new professional team replacing Taylor Made Elite. She continued to coach at BYU alongside her pro team. She was selected to attend Faith Kipyegon's Breaking4 event as a track and field luminary. Taylor was named Utah Governor's 2025 State of Sport Awards Coach of the Year.

While at BYU, Taylor has been described as 'an outspoken feminist in Mormon country'. She said that she occupied a unique 'trifecta' of being a woman in a position of power, a minority, and not a member of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and that "some people on campus don't like me". She is known for both her personal style and individualistic coaching methods using positive reinforcement. She often uses metaphors in coaching and emphasizes positive thinking.

Due to her reputation, Taylor is able to earn money from paid speeches, allowing her to wear Louis Vuitton and Gucci clothing that she became known for. Her race outfits have become the subject of commentary, having once also worn custom pants with images of her athletes on them.