KEVIN JENISON
GoSycamores.com
INDIANAPOLIS, IND. – Indiana State University was named the host for the 2011 NCAA Division I Men's and Women's Cross Country Championships, it was announced today by the NCAA office. This will be the eighth straight year and the ninth championship in the last 10 years that has been held on the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course at the Wabash Valley Family Sports Center.
“The committee appreciated that there were a number of host options on the table, so it created lengthy discussions about each of them for the 2011 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships,” Todd Patulski, chair of the NCAA Division I Men's and Women's Track and Field Committee and deputy athletics director at Baylor University, said. “In the end, we feel Indiana State provides the best option to host in 2011 and we are excited to take part in another great championship experience in Terre Haute.”
Indiana State hosted the NCAA Championship for the first time in 2002 and was named the host from 2004 thru 2010. The championship was scheduled to be moved to two other sites before returning to Indiana State in 2013.
“I'm thrilled the NCAA has the faith in our organization to return the Championship to ISU and Terre Haute,” John McNichols, Indiana State coordinator of cross country and track & field, said. “This will be the ninth time we have hosted in the past decade which far exceeds any expectations we might have had when we dedicated the LaVern Gibson Championship Course in October of 1997. The success we have enjoyed hosting the Championships is a result of the enthusiastic support of the Terre Haute community. Terre Haute is Cross Country Town USA and this selection validates our claim.”
The University of Louisville has been designated as the site of the 2012 Championship.
"I'm very proud to be a part of our local organizing committee,” Geoff Wayton, Director of Championships at Indiana State, said. “We have a core group of passionate, selfless, talented, and dedicated persons who put in countless hours for the benefit of our city and the sport of cross country. While our bid was excellent, the “addendum” to our bid was eight previous championships executed in a way that gained the trust and admiration of our national cross country community.”
“We are excited and flattered that the NCAA brings this event back to Terre Haute,” Dave Patterson, Executive Director of the Terre Haute Visitors and Convention Bureau, said. “It says a great deal about what our local committee, Indiana State University, and this entire community has proven to the cross country world. This will be an extremely busy cross country schedule this year, but this community will once again step up to the plate to be a wonderful host.”
The LaVern Gibson Cross County Championship course is no stranger to hosting premier cross country events. In addition to the NCAA National Championship for nine of the last 10 years, the course at the Wabash Valley Family Sports Center has hosted the largest gathering of collegiate cross country athletes in the nation with the Pre-National Invitational.
Indiana State has also hosted the NCAA Men's and Women's Great Lakes Region Championship four times and will be the host of the 2012 Region Championship. ISU has also hosted the Indiana Intercollegiate Men's and Women's Championship five times.
The 2011 season will be a busy time at the Sycamores home course as Indiana State will also host the Missouri Valley Conference championship for the third time.
In addition, the course has hosted the Indiana High School Athletic Association state championship and the Midwest Regional Qualifying meet for the Nike Cross Nationals.
The 2011 Pre-National Invitational is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 15 with the Missouri Valley Conference Championships on Saturday, Oct 29. The NCAA National Championship will be held on Monday, Nov. 21.
“I want to say thank you to our local organizing committee: a partnership that spans across four distinctive entities throughout the fall with the IHSAA, NCAA Division III, Nike, and NCAA Division 1,” Wayton said. “A humble thanks to the NCAA for recognizing our hard work and competency.”
