Walton Started It All In The 800

Celebrating A Century of NCAA Track & Field Championships

Walton Started It All In The 800

Fast times were not likely in the women’s 800-meter final at the 1982 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Provo, Utah.

Cold, driving rain met the finalists for the inaugural championship race that featured two stars coming back from Friday victories – Oregon’s Leann Warren, who had won the 1500 meters, and Delisa Walton, who had anchored Tennessee’s collegiate record-setting 4×400 relay team with a 51.0 split.

Walton normally raced from the front, but the conditions forced her to tuck in behind others in an effort to seek shelter from the wind, and Warren followed suit. After a first lap of 61.9 by Tennessee’s Joetta Clark, Walton and Warren followed closely on the backstretch of the second lap.

When Walton made her move with 200 to go, Warren was boxed in by Stanford’s Regina Jacobs and just missed catching Clark as the Volunteer duo went 1-2 with Walton winning in 2:05.22.

“Whoever led, I was going to stay behind, and especially when it rained,” Walton explained. “I wasn’t going to take the lead because I couldn’t see.”

Less than a month later, Walton married Houston’s Stanley Floyd, who had won the NCAA 100 meters for the second time (his first came in 1980, when he was at Auburn). In 1983, Walton won the 600 yards and anchored UT’s 4×400 team at the NCAA Indoor Championships. In April she ended her senior season when she learned she was pregnant.

The couple’s first child, Ebonie, was born in October and forged an impressive career of her own, nearly joining mom and dad as an NCAA champ in 2007 when she finished second for Houston in the 100 – the closest a mom and daughter have come to being individual champions in the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships.

posted: May 9, 2021
1921-2021
The NCAA's First Championships

The NCAA and collegiate track & field will mark a momentous milestone in the spring of 2021 -- the 100th anniversary of the NCAA Championships and with that, the NCAA Track & Field Championships. In June 1921, the University of Chicago hosted the first track & field championships in NCAA history.

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.

To celebrate, over each of the next 365 days, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) will celebrate moments, 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.

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
Plab Reached Lofty Heights In NCAA HJ

Darrin Plab won back-to-back HJ titles at the NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships in 1991 & 1992. Plab cleared 2.34m (7-8) in 1992 & tied the 2nd best bar in meet history.

Peoples Made History One Lap At A Time

Maurice Peoples won the 440-yard dash in 1973 & then really turned up the heat. Peoples split 43.4 on the Sun Devils’ mile relay team that finished third in the final.

KU’s Lokedi Set 10K MR In 2018

Sharon Lokedi won the 10K at the 2018 NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships in a meet-record 32:09.20. Lokedi led five other women under the old final-site best, too.

Can Ereng Kick It? Yes, He Can!

Paul Ereng won back-to-back 800-meter titles at the NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships in 1988 & 1989. Ereng is still the current indoor record holder in the event.

Dwight Stones Set High Jump WR In 1976

Dwight Stones set a world record in the high jump of 2.31m (7-7) at the 1976 NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships. Stones also raised the MR by more than 3 inches!