For immediate release
Dec. 7, 2007

Sacramento awarded 2010 U.S. Masters Track & Field Championships

Three months after landing the biggest masters competition in the world, the Sacramento Sports Commission made a successful bid to host the 2010 USA Masters Outdoor Track & Field Championships.

The four-day event will be held July 7-11, 2010, at Sacramento State’s A.G. Spanos Sports Complex. Approximately 1,000 athletes ranging in age from 35 to over 90 are expected to compete.

Sacramento was awarded the USA Masters Outdoor Track & Field Championships after making a presentation at USA Track & Field’s annual convention in Honolulu.

Earlier this year, Sacramento was named the host city of the 2011 World Masters Association Championships. The 2007 WMA Championships in Italy attracted more than 9,000 athletes from 90 countries, making it the largest track and field competition in the world.

When Sacramento landed the 2011 WMA Championships, it made sense to pursue the U.S. event, according to John McCasey, chief executive officer of the Sacramento Sports Commission.

“This is an opportunity for us to provide a quality competition similar to the ones we’ve hosted in the past, such as the U.S. Olympic Trials and the NCAA Championships,” McCasey said. “It will give U.S. masters athletes a chance to see what Sacramento has to offer a year before the WMA Championships, and it will give us an opportunity to meet the unique challenge of hosting a major masters event.”

The 2010 USA Masters Outdoor Track & Field Championships will be held in California for just the second time since 1989.

In the past 12 years, Sacramento has held more championship meets than any city in the country. In addition to holding the 2000 and 2004 U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials, California’s capital city played host to the 1995 USA Outdoor Championships, 2001 Junior Olympics and four NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships (2003, 2005, 2006 and 2007).

Sacramento will play host to the world’s biggest track and field competition in 2011, the World Masters Association announced today in Riccione, Italy.

The WMA Championships is an international track and field competition for “masters” athletes age 35 and over. The 2007 WMA Championships taking place in Italy this week attracted more than 9,000 athletes from 90 countries.

Sacramento competed for the 2011 WMA Championships against Porto Alegre, Brazil. Following one-hour presentations from the two bid cities, the WMA Council voted 69-39 Tuesday morning to award its biennial event to Sacramento.

The tentative date of the Sacramento event is July 7-17, 2011. Contestants will compete over 11 days at Sacramento State (Hornet Stadium), Sacramento City College (Hughes Stadium) and Folsom High School. The WMA Championships currently taking place in Italy features athletes ranging in age from 35 to 95.

The Sacramento Sports Commission previously bid for the 2005 WMA Championships but lost out to San Sebastian, Spain. Sports Commission executive director John McCasey said his group learned from that loss and focused its bid and presentation on the athletes’ needs – good facilities, transportation and housing.

“This will be as challenging as the Olympic Trials, with less fanfare but with a comparable economic impact,” McCasey said. “It’s a truly international event, and we’re excited that our efforts were rewarded this time around.”

Joining McCasey in making Tuesday’s presentation were masters competitors Bill Collins and Joy Upshaw-Margerum. Collins, a 56-year-old sprinter from Houston, Texas, was the World Male Masters Athlete of the Year in 2006. Upshaw-Margerum has won a pair of medals in the 45-49 age class in Riccione and serves as the masters chair for the Pacific Association of USA Track & Field.

“I think the voting delegates were impressed by the way we presented the bid from the athlete’s perspective,” Collins said. “Usually a city focuses more on the tourism aspects. While Sacramento certainly has a lot to offer in that respect, I think it’s good that we put the emphasis on the athletes and the competition.”

Porto Alegro’s bid had the considerable support of WMA President Cesare Beccalli, whose wife hails from the Brazilian city. Porto Alegre would have hosted the 2011 WMA Championships in January, during the South American summer season. Sacramento’s July date was more agreeable to the European countries that comprise the backbone of masters track and field.

“I think we won for a number of reasons,” McCasey said. “The date was certainly a factor, as was the fact that we’ve hosted a number of major track events. We have an experienced organization already in place.”

The WMA Championships were last held in the United States in 1995, when Buffalo served as the host city. That was the year when Sacramento began its run of high-profile track meets. The 1995 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Hughes Stadium led to the 2000 U.S. Olympic Trials at Sacramento State

In addition to holding the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials, Sacramento also hosted four NCAA Division I Championships and the 2002 Junior Olympics.