Sport | Masters track and field |
---|---|
Founded | 1975 |
Country | United States |
Related competitions | USATF Masters Outdoor Championships |
Official website | USATF Official website |
The USATF Masters Indoor Championships is an annual track and field competition which serves as the national indoor championship for the United States for athletes in masters age groups. Organized by USA Track & Field, the national governing body for the sport, the competition was first held in 1975. [1] Athletes compete in 5-year age groups, beginning from 25 and up to 105 (where sufficient entries are made). Traditionally limited to athletes over 35, a "pre-masters" group was introduced from 2020 onwards to encourage post-collegiate athletes over 25 to continue competing. [2] [3]
David Pain organized a masters mile run competition in 1966 at Balboa Stadium in San Diego, which grew into a wider track and field championship two years later in 1968. [4] Seven years after, the first National Masters Indoor Track and Field Championship was held March 2, 1975 in Hightstown, NJ. The meet was for men and women athletes age 40 and older. Contact for the meet was Rudy Clarence of New York. [5] [6] The 1975 meet was held at the new Peddie School athletic center with a Tartan indoor track (built in 1972). [7] The meet has continued annually since, with the exception of 2020 and 2021 which was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [8] [9]
The 1975 meet included Jerry Donley, Bob Fine, Ray Gordon, George Puterbaugh, and George A. Sheehan all winning medals at the 1975 meet. [10] Ed McComas broke the listed Masters indoor shot put record. [11] [12] George Braceland, Bud Deacon, Claude Hills, Len Olson, and Archie Messenger were competitors at the 1976 meet. [13]
Atlanta Track Club won the 1986 meet, with Philipa Raschker winning seven of their fourteen medals. [14] During the March 1988 meet, a major milestone was achieved when Raschker became the first female to pole vault at a major USA indoor track and field championship for any age category. She vaulted 2.44 (8’-0”) at age 40. [15] Track & Field News magazine would not report women pole vault records or rankings until after 1988, [16] and women's pole vault at the Olympics took a further twelve years. [17]
Denver Smith (Over the Hill Track Club) won three medals at the 1989 meet. Other winners included Jack Greenwood, Buck Bradberry, Horace Hudson, and Barbara Stewart. [18] [19] Rose Thompson and Sue Tallard won four and three events at the 1990 meet. [20]
In 2005, June Machala won two gold medals, her husband Joe Machala won two medals, [21] Thad Wilson (M50) won gold in the long jump, [22] and Sean Maye (M35) set an American Indoor Record in the 200 meter dash. [23]
March 2009 Henry Rono competed at the Landover, Maryland meet. [24] [25]
The 2019 meet included a full range of running, field, and relay events (including the pentathlon). Betty Lindberg (age 94), Dixon Hemphill (94) and George Roudebush (93) each won several medals at the 2019 meet. [26] A full history of past results of the competition is held by Mastershistory.org, [27] while a full list of organizer bids for the event is held at the USATF website. [28]
Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center in Massachusetts has held the meet on several occasions. [29]
USATF reports the 2022 meet included ten Masters American Records on the last day of competition. [30]
Numerous Olympians have competed at the USA Masters Indoor Championships.
In 1975 Bob Backus, Bruce MacDonald, and Bob Mimm each won gold at the first National AAU Masters Indoor Track and Field Championship. [31] The 1976 meet included Bob Backus, Boo Morcom, and Phil Mulkey as competitors. [32] Bill Toomey competed at the 1981 meet. [33] Bob Mimm, Boo Morcom, Phil Mulkey, Bob Richards, Todd Scully and Fred Samara competed at the 1984 meet. [34] [35]
The 1986 meet included Bob Richards going head to head with Boo Morcom twice in the M60 division. Richards winning the PV, and Morcom winning the HJ. Thane Baker won two medals in the sprints. [36] Bob Richards won a medal in the pole vault at the 1989 meet. [37] Cliff Blair, Bob Richards, Cindy Bremser, and Sandy Knott won medals at the 1990 meet. [38]
Eddie Hart, Phil Mulkey, Bob Richards, Jo Ann Terry Grissom, and Sandra Knott competed at the 1990 meet. [39] Bill Rodgers and Joan Benoit Samuelson competed at the 2003 meet. Benoit Samuelson broke the 3000 meter Masters Record at the 2003 meet. [40] [41] [42] Trish King (Patricia Porter) and Christopher Faulknor (Jamaican Olympian) won medals at the 2011 meet. [43]
At the March 1994 meet Dwight Stones won the M40 high jump. [44]
In March 2009, several Olympians competed at the Landover, Maryland meet, including Jim Barrineau, Renée Belanger (Canadian Olympian), and Howard Lindsay (Antiguan and Barbudan Olympian) [45] [46] March 2023 included multi-time winner Michelle Rohl (USA), [47] and Jamaican Olympian Garth Robinson. [48]
Competitors Charles Allie and Rita Hanscom received the male and female masters international athlete of the year awards from the IAAF in 2013 and 2009, respectively. [49] [50]
Several former National Football League (NFL) football players have competed at this meet. Billy "White Shoes" Johnson competed at the 2002 meet. [51] Willie Gault medaled at the 2003 meet. [52] Todd Christensen competed at the 2004 meet. [53] Henry Ellard medaled in the triple jump at the 2015. [54] Phil McConkey competed at the 2017 meet. [55] Competing as a M25 athlete: Tyreek Hill won the 60 meter dash at the 2023 Masters Indoor Championship. [56]
Several Centenarians have competed at this meet. Everett Hosack (ages 100 and 101) competed at the 2002 and 2003 meets. Hosack set several records. [57] [58] [59] March 2014 centenarian masters track and field athlete, Leland McPhie (age 100), won gold medals in the weight throw, superweight throw and shot put. [60] [61] Orville Rogers (100) and Julia “Hurricane” Hawkins (102) set Masters Records at the 2018 meet. [62] [63]
The Championships are webcast on usatf.tv.
The competition receives mainstream coverage from American media outlets, typically focusing on the highest age brackets, [64] as well as more detailed coverage from athletics-related media such as Runner's World . [65] [66] [67]
1977, The Ashbury Park Press quoted a David Pain prediction, “there will be more Masters (40-plus) track athletes in the U.S. than younger athletes in less than 10 years”. [68] 1985 the Baltimore Sun stated on M35 Mile winner Jim Shank, "Westminster man devotes life to running; won't quit as long as it's fun, competitive." [69]
1990, Capital Times reports, “… take a back seat to the flood of world and American records that fell … four world records were broken, one world record was tied, and 22 American records were broken . . . “. [70] Wisconsin State Journal quoted Bob Richards in 1990, “Boo Morcom . . . without a doubt the greatest star in Masters”. [71] 1984 meet director Ron Salvio stated, “These Masters athletes are part of one of the most rapidly growing movements in sport”. [72]
1998 Boston Globe reports, "The National Masters competition includes 17 track and field events and attracts more than 800 athletes from around the country ranging in age from 30 into the 90s". [73] Fox TV News statement by Todd Christensen in 2004 “I’m impressed by the fact that it seems to me that you would think that at a certain age your competitiveness ends but it really doesn’t”. [74]
2011 Albuquerque article on Nolan Shaheed shares his story on how playing jazz (horn) and distance running improves his music and his running. Shaheed is a multi-time National Champion and Record Holder. [75]
Edition | Location | Date | Ref |
---|---|---|---|
AAU | |||
1975 | Hightstown, New Jersey | March 2, 1975 | [76] |
1976 | Medford, Massachusetts Tufts Univ. | March 14, 1976 | [77] |
1977 | New Haven, Connecticut | March 13, 1977 | [78] |
1978 | East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania | March 19, 1978 | [79] |
1979 AAU | Ann Arbor, Michigan | March 17–18, 1979 | [80] |
1980 & 1981 were transition years leaving the AAU | |||
1980 AAU | Syracuse, New York | March 29, 1980 | [81] [82] |
1981 TFA | Liberty, Missouri | February 15, 1981 | [83] |
1981 TAC | Ann Arbor, Michigan | February 28 – March 1, 1981 | [84] |
TAC | |||
1982 | Cambridge, Massachusetts | March 27–28, 1982 | [85] |
1983 | Bethlehem, Pennsylvania | March 26–27, 1983 | [86] |
1984 | Princeton, New Jersey | March 24–25, 1984 | [87] |
1985 | Sterling, Illinois | March 30–31, 1985 | [88] |
1986 | Baton Rouge, Louisiana | February 22–23, 1986 | [89] |
1987 | Madison, Wisconsin | March 28–29, 1987 | [90] |
1988 | Baton Rouge, Louisiana | March 19–20, 1988 | [91] |
1989 | Columbus, Ohio | March 31 – April 2, 1989 | [92] |
1990 | Madison, Wisconsin | March 24–25, 1990 | [93] |
1991 | Blaine, Minnesota | March 22–24, 1991 | [94] |
1992 | Columbus, Ohio | April 3–5, 1992 | [95] |
USATF 1993 to Present | |||
1993 | Bozeman, Montana | March 19–21, 1993 | [96] |
1994 | Columbia, Missouri | March 25–27, 1994 | [97] |
1995 | Reno, Nevada | February 24–26, 1995 | [98] |
1996 | Greensboro, North Carolina | March 29–31, 1996 | [99] |
1997 | Boston, MA | March 21–23, 1997 | [100] |
1998 | Boston, MA | March 27–29, 1998 | [101] |
1999 | Boston, MA | March 26–28, 1999 | [102] |
2000 | Boston, MA | March 24–26, 2000 | [103] |
2001 | Boston, MA | March 23–25, 2001 | [104] |
2002 | Boston, MA | March 22–24, 2002 | [105] |
2003 | Boston, MA | March 28–30, 2003 | [106] |
2004 | Boston, MA | March 26–28, 2004 | [107] |
2005 | Nampa, Idaho | March 11–13, 2005 | [108] |
2006 | Boston, MA | March 24–26, 2006 | [109] |
2007 | Boston, MA | March 23–25, 2007 | [110] |
2008 | Boston, MA | March 28–30, 2008 | [111] |
2009 | Landover, Maryland | March 20–22, 2009 | [112] |
2010 | Boston, MA | March 26–28, 2010 | [113] |
2011 | Albuquerque, New Mexico | March 4–6, 2011 | [114] |
2012 | Bloomington, Indiana | March 16–18, 2012 | [115] |
2013 | Landover, Maryland | March 22–24, 2013 | [116] |
2014 | Boston, MA | March 14–16, 2014 | [117] |
2015 | Winston-Salem, North Carolina | March 20–22, 2015 | [118] |
2016 | Albuquerque, New Mexico | March 4–6, 2016 | [119] |
2017 | Albuquerque, New Mexico | February 17–19, 2017 | [120] |
2018 | Landover, Maryland | March 16–18, 2018 | [121] |
2019 | Winston-Salem, North Carolina | March 1–4, 2019 | [122] |
2020 | Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | --- | [123] |
2021 | Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | --- | [124] |
2022 | Fort Washington Avenue Armory, New York City, NY | March 18–20, 2022 | [125] |
2023 | Norton Sports & Learning Center, Louisville, KY | March 10–12, 2023 | [126] |
2024 | Chicago, IL | Mar 21-24, 2024 | [127] |
2025 | Gainesville, Florida | Scheduled for Feb 20-23, 2025 | [128] |
USA Track & Field (USATF) is a United States national governing body for the sports of track and field, cross country running, road running, and racewalking. The USATF was known between 1979 and 1992 as The Athletics Congress (TAC) after its spin-off from the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), which governed the sport in the US through most of the 20th century until the Amateur Sports Act of 1978 dissolved its responsibility. Based in Indianapolis, USATF is a non-profit organization with a membership of more than 130,000. The organization has three key leadership positions: CEO Max Siegel, Board of Directors Chair Steve Miller, and elected president Vin Lananna. U.S. citizens and permanent residents can be USATF members, but permanent residents can only participate in masters events in the country, and they cannot win USATF medals, prize money, or score points for a team, per World Athletics regulations.
Masters Athletics managed by World Masters Athletics is a class of the sport of athletics for athletes of 35 years of age and over organized by World Masters Athletics. The events include track and field, road running and cross country running. Competitors are bracketed into five-year age groups. For international events the first age group is 35 to 39. Men as old as 105 and women in their 100s have competed in running, jumping and throwing events. Masters athletes are sometimes known as "veterans" and the European Masters Championships, for instance, is known as "Eurovets". This and other high level events including biennial World Championships cater largely to elite-level athletes, but many masters athletes are novices to athletics and enjoy the camaraderie offered by masters competition at the local, National and International level. Most National governing bodies for track and field hold annual Masters championships. Prestigious National meets such as the Penn Relays and the United States Olympic Trials put on exhibition events for top masters athletes. Masters athletics is growing Internationally with over 6000 athletes competing at recent World Championships. World; National and Regional records are maintained for each age group.
Eileen-Philippa "Phil" Raschker is a German-born American masters athlete.
Kathy Bergen is an American Masters athletics track and field athlete. She is the current world record holder in the W70 100 meters and the high jump. She also holds the Indoor World records for the W65 high jump, the W70 60 meters, 200 meters and high jump. And she holds the American record for the W70 200 meters and the W65 high jump. She is the oldest woman to break the 15 second barrier in the 100 meters and to break 32 seconds in the 200 meters.
Mary Cecilia Cain is an American professional middle distance runner from Bronxville, New York. Cain was the 2014 World Junior Champion in the 3000 meter event. She is the youngest American athlete ever to represent the United States at a track and field World Championships meet after competing in the 2013 World Championships in Athletics in Moscow aged 17 years and 3 months.
Trayvon Jaquez Bromell is an American professional track and field athlete specializing in sprinting events. He won bronze medals in the 100 meters at the 2015 and 2022 World Championships. Bromell was the 2016 World indoor 60 meters champion, and competed for the United States at the 2016 Rio and 2020 Tokyo Olympics. He was the first junior to break the 10-second barrier in the 100 meters with a time of 9.97 seconds, the former junior world record.
Michael Arthur Norman Jr. is an American sprinter. He previously held the world best time in the indoor 400 meters at 44.52 seconds. Outdoors, his 43.45, set at the 2019 Mt. SAC Relays, is tied on sixth on the all time list. In 2016, he became the world junior champion in both the 200 meters and 4×100 meter relay. In 2022, he became the world champion in both the 400 meters and 4x400 meter relay.
Raevyn Rogers is an American middle-distance athlete. She won a bronze medal in the 800 meters at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, becoming the fourth fastest woman in U.S. history in the event. At the 2019 World Championships, Rogers came from seventh with 100m remaining in the race to place silver over USA teammate Ajeé Wilson in bronze. She earned a world indoor title as a member of national 4x400 m relay squad that took gold at the 2018 World Indoor Championships.
Ronnie Baker is an American professional track and field athlete specializing in the sprints. Over 60 meters his personal best time of 6.40 seconds makes him the third-fastest man in the event in history. He was champion over 60 m at the USA Indoor Championships in 2017, a medalist over 60 m at the World Indoor Championships in 2018, and a gold medallist in the 4 × 100 m relay at the World Relays in 2017. Baker was a dominant competitor over 100 m in the Diamond League circuit in 2018, winning four races and placing no worse than second, including in the final where he also placed second. He was the fastest man in the world in 2017 over 60 m, and the second fastest in 2018 over both 60 m and 100 m. In college he competed for the TCU Horned Frogs, where he was champion over 60 m at the NCAA Division I Indoor Championships in both 2015 and 2016. At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Ronnie Baker ran the personal best of 9.83 in the men's 100m semi-finals, which made him the 6th fastest man in the history of Olympics 100m event.
Kahmari Montgomery is an American track and field sprinter specializing in the 400 m for Nike. He was the men's 400 m champion at the USA Championships in 2018, and at the NCAA Division I Championships in 2019. He represented the United States in the 4 × 400 m relay at the World U20 Championships in 2016 and at the inaugural Athletics World Cup in 2018, earning gold medals in both competitions.
Taylor Ewert is an American long-distance runner and college track and field athlete for the University of Arkansas and Michigan State University. In high school, she set numerous records and was the cross country OHSAA Division I individual state champion in 2019, representing Beavercreek High School. Ewert committed to the University of Arkansas later that year, and in 2020, she was named the Gatorade National Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year.
Stanley Grant Holloway is an American professional hurdler and sprinter. He is a three-time world champion, 2024 Paris Olympic gold medalist in the 110 meters hurdles and the second-fastest man in history at the event with a personal best of 12.81 seconds, set at the U.S. Olympic Trials on June 26, 2021. In the 60 meters hurdles, Holloway is the 2022 Belgrade and 2024 Glasgow World Indoor champion and the world indoor record holder with a time of 7.27 seconds set at the 2024 USA Track & Field Indoor Championships.
Shuttle hurdle relay (SHR) is a type of a relay race in track and field in which participants jump (sprint) over hurdles. The shuttle hurdle relay is contested at the Drake Relays, Desert Conference Relays, Kansas Relays, Mt. SAC Relays, Penn Relays, Texas Relays, Akron Relays, Alabama Relay, Appalachian Conference Relay, Florida Relays (Gainesville), Knoxville Relay, Long Beach Relay, Ohio Relays, Santa Barbara Relay, So Cal Relays, Tennessee Relays, Towson Relays, and Tri-State Relays. The SHR was also included at the 2019 IAAF World Relays and 2021 competition.
The first Masters Southern California Track and Field Championships was held on June 1, 1974, at Sunny Hills High School in Fullerton. Masters class Track and Field had officially started in 1968 in nearby San Diego. Since its first annual meet, the Masters Southern California Track and Field Championships has been held every successive year except 2020, when the meet was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the years, the meet has been organized under a succession of organizations: the Southern California Association of the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), The Athletics Congress (TAC), and currently USA Track and Field (USATF).
The USATF Masters Outdoor Championships is an annual track and field competition which serves as the national championship for the United States for athletes in masters age groups. Organized by USA Track & Field, the national governing body for the sport, the competition was first held in 1968. Athletes compete in 5-year age groups, beginning from 25 and up to 105. Traditionally limited to athletes over 35, a "pre-masters" group was introduced in 2020 to encourage post-collegiate athletes over 25 to continue competing.
2004 World Masters Athletics Indoor Championships is the first in a series of World Masters Athletics Indoor Championships that were held following the success of both stadia and non-stadia World Masters Athletics Outdoor Championships, This inaugural WMA Indoor Championships took place in Sindelfingen, Germany, from 10 to 14 March 2004.