KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has announced that the 2011 and 2012 NAIA Men’s and Women’s Indoor Track & Field National Championships will be hosted by the Geneva Area Recreational, Educational, and Athletic Trust (GaREAT) Sports Complex, located in Geneva, Ohio. The 2011 event will be conducted from March 3-5, while the 2012 Championships will be held from March 1-3. GaREAT Sports Complex will take over as hosts after it was held in Johnson City, Tenn., from 2001-10.
"The NAIA is looking forward to having the GaREAT Sports Complex host our Indoor Track & Field National Championships for the next two years,” said Jim Carr, NAIA President and CEO. “This organization oversees world-class facilities and will offer our student-athletes, coaches and fans a truly memorable experience. We are excited to nationally showcase the best track and field athletes in Geneva, Ohio.”
The first phase of the GaREAT Sports Complex was completed in March of 2009. In January of 2010, the complex opened one of the top indoor track and field facilities in the country. The indoor track is an eight lane, 300-meter Beynon synthetic track surface with two, 150-meter straight-aways. The field events have two high jump pits, dual long and triple jump pits and multiple throws areas. The 240,000 square-foot building seats 5,000. The facility also includes locker rooms, concessions, equipment storage space and a mezzanine dining area that overlooks the track complex.
“In addition to their new state-of-the-art facility, GaREAT provides an environment that cultivates traits of true character through examples of strong virtue, which parallels the NAIA Champions of Character initiative,” said Ruth Stein, NAIA Manager of Championship Sports. “The partnership with GaREAT Sports Complex to host the NAIA Indoor Track & Field National Championships is a natural fit for the NAIA.”
GaREAT is a non-profit corporation created to focus both energy and funding towards creating a world-class multipurpose facility. After all four phases of the complex are completed, there will be over 450,000 square feet on a 175-acre campus. This venue annually hosts USA Track and Field age-group meets, high school and AAU events and Masters, Open, and College meets. In addition to track and field, the complex serves as host in various sports such as baseball, basketball, football, gymnastics, lacrosse, soccer, softball and volleyball.
“GaREAT Sports Complex is excited to host the NAIA Championships for 2011 and 2012,” said David Smalley, GaREAT Sports Complex Director of Operations. “We look forward to having the student-athletes, coaches, families and fans at the best indoor track facility in the country. The entire northeastern Ohio community looks forward to partnering with the NAIA and making these championships very special.”
Each year, this Championship welcomes more than 1,400 student-athletes from over 100 schools across the U.S. and Canada competing in 42 different events. This past March, Oklahoma Baptist won the women’s team championship, while the Azusa Pacific (Calif.) men took home the team honors.
To learn more about the NAIA Men’s and Women’s Indoor Track & Field National Championships, click
here.
To learn more about the GaREAT Sports Complex, click
here.