Outdoor Track & Field
In 1921, Amos Alonzo Stagg of the University of Chicago, John L. Griffith of the University of Illinois, and Thomas E. Jones of the University of Wisconsin helped organize the first NCAA championship in any sport, the 1921 National Collegiate Track & Field Championships. The first Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Championships were contested in the spring of 1982. The NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Championships are contested on the same days at the same site each year.
In supporting the creation of the Championships during the 1920 NCAA Convention, then-NCAA President Palmer Pierce explained that “such a national contest would act as a stimulus to field sports and track events throughout the whole length and breadth of the land, and by actual competition determine a national championship.” At that first Championship, though inclement weather kept the crowds small, gate receipts were used to help offset traveling expenses for two-thirds of the visiting teams. The following year, gate receipts were large enough to be used to reimburse full rail fare for each of the visiting teams.
Early NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships were all-comers meets open to any NCAA institutions that could afford the travel costs and entry fees. Qualifying standards first were established in the 1970s to limit entries and to ensure the highest-quality field at the Championships. The first cap on the overall field size was introduced in 1992 for both men and women. Regional qualification was introduced in 2003, and Preliminary Championships Competitions were introduced in 2010.
Cross Country
The first NCAA Championships in Cross Country were held in 1938, largely due to the efforts of Michigan State University Athletic Director and NACDA Hall of Famer Ralph Young. The first NCAA Championships in Women’s Cross Country were held in the fall of 1981, becoming the first NCAA Division I Women’s Championship in any sport. The NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Championships are contested on the same day at the same site each year.
Early NCAA Cross Country Championships were all-comers meets open to any NCAA institutions that could afford the travel costs and entry fees. In 1979, the NCAA first required all teams and individuals to qualify through district meets in order to compete in the Championships. District meets are now known as regional meets. These meets were and continue to be all-comers meets open to any NCAA institutions in the region who can afford the travel costs.
Indoor Track & Field
In 1965, NACDA Hall of Famer Don Canham of the University of Michigan and Weems Baskin of the University of South Carolina organized the first-ever NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships. The first Women’s Indoor Track & Field Championships were contested in the winter of 1983. The NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Indoor Track & Field Championships are contested on the same days at the same site each year.
The first cap on the overall field size of the Indoor Track & Field Championships was introduced in 1989 for men and 1992 for women.