Armory Track and Field Events Announced

By SEAN EGAN

Track and field officials from colleges and high schools around the world announced details on Thursday of the 16th annual Armory Track Invitational, an extensive two-day competition set to happen this weekend in the Armory on Ft. Washington Avenue in Upper Manhattan..

Athletes from 75 college teams, including Wisconsin, Arizona, South Carolina, Duke, Ohio State, and the University of Poitiers from France, were scheduled to compete in indoor track and field events.

“It started out as a college meet only,” said Jack Pfeifer, the meet director at a Midtown hotel where the announcement was made. “I think the first year we had 10 schools. Now we have about 75.”

Athletes from the University of Wisconsin have won the meet the past two years, according to the school’s track and field director, Mick Byrne, and are thrilled to compete again in New York City.

For West Coast runners, competing at an indoor event such as the ATI offers a widely different experience from what they are used to. The Armory is a large venue that provides intensity unmatched on the West Coast, according to University of Arizona track and field director Fred Harvey.

“When I tell my team that the fans are on top of you, I literally mean they are on top of you,” said Harvey. “So they’ll feel the energy of being here.”

The University of Arizona will compete in an array of events this weekend, including the men’s 60 hurdles, women’s 3000-meter, the long jumps, 400-meter (men and women,) and what Harvey promises is an exceptional 4×400 meter relay team.

Harvey put his expectations for his athletes on the table by predicting that his 4×400 relay squad would finish with a time better than 3:40. The record for men’s indoor 4×400 relay is 3:02.

“Pressure; that’s how you make diamonds,” said Harvey after his prediction.

Despite the myriad of events, and the hundreds of college athletes competing this weekend, all eyes will be on Drew Hunter, a senior from Loudoun Valley High School in Virginia, as he makes his first attempt of the year to run the mile in under four minutes. If accomplished, Hunter will join an exclusive list of high school men who have run the mile in under four minutes. The other name on that list is Alan Webb, a fellow Virginian who broke the four-minute barrier 15 years ago at The Armory.

Hunter broke the 3000-meter record last Saturday at the Camel City Elite Races in North Carolina finishing it in just under eight minutes. He looks to keep the momentum this Saturday in the men’s mile by running into track and field history.