NCHSAA 1-A, 3-A state championship track and field championships set for Friday, Saturday

Click to view

GREENSBORO  - Top athletes from across the state of North Carolina will compete in a busy weekend of track as the North Carolina High School Athletic Association begins its state track and field championships.

The weekend of competition will feature 1-A championships for both men and women on Friday, and then on Saturday the 3-A championships will be held, all at the Irwin Belk Track on the campus of North Carolina A&T State University.

The 2-A and 4-A meets will be held next weekend. Action in the field events will begin at 11 am and running events will start at noon on Friday, while Saturday¹s schedule opens with field events at 10 am and running events at 11 am. It will be the 89th annual men¹s championships and the 38th annual renewal of the women¹s event.

Winston-Salem Prep was the 1-A women¹s team champion a year ago while Hendersonville took the men¹s title, and both of those schools won regional titles over the weekend. In men¹s competition, Hendersonvile, Winston-Salem Prep, Princeton and Pamlico captured regional crowns while it was Swain County, Winston-Salem Prep, North Carolina School of Science and Math and Hampstead Topsail winning in women's competition.

Mooresville is the two-time defending state champion among the 3-A men while Jacksonville took the 3-A women¹s crown in 2008. Mooresville won its regional last weekend and joins Waxhaw Marvin Ridge, Greensboro Dudley and West Carteret as regional champions on the men¹s side. Dudley also won its regional women¹s title along with Winston-Salem Parkland, Asheville T.C. Roberson and Jacksonville White Oak.

The Greensboro Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Greensboro Sports Commission are serving as the host city sponsors for the event.

NCHSAA FastFacts

Event: NCHSAA Track and Field Championships, 1-A and 3-A classifications

Date: May 15-16, 2009, with 1-A men and women on May 15 and 3-A men and women on May 16

Site: Irwin Belk Track, North Carolina A&T State University, Greensboro

First Held: 1913 for men, 1972 for women

Qualifiers: The top four finishers in each event, including relays, qualified from the regional level to the state championship meet

Defending champions: women: 1-A, Winston-Salem Prep; 3-A, Jacksonville; men: 1-A. Hendersonville; 3-A, Mooresville

Of Interest: the oldest men's track and field record still on the NCHSAA books is the 1975 record-setting shot put of Mike Salzano of Northern Durham at 61 feet, four and one-half inches.

Host City Sponsors: Greensboro Sports Commission, Greensboro Convention and Visitors Bureau