USTFCCCA News & Notes
By USTFCCCA Communications, USTFCCCA May 26, 2020   

Celebrating A Century of NCAA Track & Field Championships

The USTFCCCA and collegiate track & field will join together to mark a momentous milestone in the spring of 2021 — the 100th anniversary of the staging of championships in the NCAA and with that, the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. 

This point can’t be emphasized enough: Not only was the event the first for NCAA track & field, but the first championships for any sport under the sponsorship of the NCAA. It was June 1921 when the University of Chicago hosted the first track & field championships in NCAA history.

In celebration of this upcoming landmark, over each of the next 365 days, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) will present moments and feature student-athletes and coaches that have made a century’s worth of championships special. From humble beginnings to important historical milestones to the modern-day, collegiate track & field has evolved with the American society. 

Each day, a new moment, tidbit, or spotlight will be added to an ongoing blog at USTFCCCA.org and featured on the Association’s social media. It will start tomorrow, May 27, with a synopsis of the first-edition, 1921 championships.

“We celebrate where we’ve been and where we are going,” said USTFCCCA CEO Sam Seemes. “Our aim in delivering this compelling content over the next year’s time is to not only highlight the incredible moments that have occured, but also to demonstrate the importance of collegiate track & field to the sport, collegiate athletics, and society as a whole. The championships have evolved, weathered ups-and-downs, but has always served as a model of future progress, inclusion, and a template for showcasing student-athlete excellence and experience through athletics.”

The 2021 edition of the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships begin with preliminary round action on May 27-29 in Jacksonville, Fla., and College Station, Texas. The championships final site and culmination of the celebration is slated for June 9-12, 2021 at the newly rebuilt Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

Memorable Moments
Two Laps To Glory For Everett
June 1, 1990

Mark Everett set a meet record of 1:44.70 in the 800 Meters at the 1990 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships.

Brooks Made NCAA Shot Put History

Tia Brooks won back-to-back shot put titles at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships and broke the collegiate indoor record in the event in 2013.

Scott One-Upped Himself In 1978
June 3, 1978

Steve Scott of UC Irvine won the 1500-meter title at the 1978 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships, one year after finishing runner-up at the same meet as an NCAA Division II athlete.

Sheffield Won An Incredible 400H Final
May 31, 1985

LaTanya Sheffield of San Diego State won the 400 Hurdles at the 1985 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships with an American record and collegiate record of 54.64.

Okagbare Mined For History In 2010

Blessing Okagbare is the only woman in the history of the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships to win both the 100 Meters and long jump!

Kiss The Competition Goodbye

Balazs Kiss won four consecutive hammer throw title at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships and still holds the collegiate record in the event!

LSU’s Duncan Roared To 200 History

Kimberlyn Duncan was the only woman in the history of the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships to win three consecutive 200-meter titles, doing so between 2011 and 2013.