Posted: July 12, 2007

Athletics: Clubs set to do battle for national bragging rights

NEW YORK - The country's top track clubs converge on New York this Friday and Saturday for the 2007 USATF National Club Track & Field Championships. Featuring $10,000 in prize money, the meet will be held for the second straight year at New York City's Icahn Stadium, located on Randall's Island. It is conducted by the Metropolitan Association of USA Track & Field in cooperation with the USATF Club Council and a coalition of local USATF Elite Development track clubs. More than 450 athletes from 67 USATF clubs are entered in the meet, which is being held for the seventh consecutive year. The Greater Boston Track Club returns as the defending women's champions and will field a strong men's team as well. GBTC swept the men's and women's titles, as well as the combined Team title, in 2002. The Executive Track Club (Metropolitan Association) is the defending men's champion team, but VS Athletics of Southern California has 25 athletes entered and is looking to make a run at the men's title. The mission of the USATF Club Council is to enhance and expand opportunities for open level, club-based team competition in track & field, cross country, long distance running, and race walking. The Council seeks to support and promote the club system of elite athlete development by fostering the creation of Elite Development Clubs everywhere elite athletes reside, and in every major metropolitan area of the United States. Event reports and results can be found at the USATF Web site, USATF.org. Below is a complete listing of clubs competing at the 2007 USATF National Club Track & Field Championships (Association in parentheses): Athletics East (New England), Awesome Power Track (Metropolitan), Bellmore Striders (Long Island), Boston Athletic Association (New England), Breakneck Track Club (New Jersey) NJ, Brockport Distance Project (Niagara), Brooklyn Sparrows (Metropolitan), Charlottesville Track Club (Virginia), Cheetahs International T.C. (S. Calf.), Clifton Park Track Club (Adirondack), Club Northwest (Pacific NW), Comets Track Club (New Jersey), Colonial Track Club (Mid-Atlantic), ConnQuest (Conn.), CT. Racewalkers (Conn.), Dominion Track Club (Florida), Dragons Elite T.C. (New Jersey), Emerging Elite Athletes (Metropolitan), Executive Track Club (Metropolitan),Greater Boston Track Club (N. England), Holmes County Track Club (Ohio), Infant Jesus Track Club (Long Island), Jacksonville Track Club (Florida), Kansas City Smoke (Missouri Valley), LeMans Track Club (Metropolitan), Liberty Athletics (Mid-Atlantic), Litchfield Track Club (Conn.), Long Island Road Runners Club (Long Island), Merrimack Valley Striders (N. England), Mission Valley Track & Field Club (Pacific), Monmouth Track Club (New Jersey), Musketeers Track Club (Metropolitan), Nashville Illusions Track Club (Tenn.), New Balance Boston (N. England), New Horizon T.C. (Metropolitan), New Jersey Striders (New Jersey), New York Athletic Club (59-0114), Newburgh Elite Track Club (Metropolitan), Nike Central Park Track Club (Metropolitan), Norfolk Real Deal (Virginia), NTC Break Away Track Club (Florida), Pacers/Brooks (Potomac Valley), Park Racewalkers, USA (Metropolitan), Peninsula Distance Club (Pacific), Philadelphia Athletic Charities T.C. (Mid-Atlantic), Philadelphia Panthers (Mid-Atlantic), Philadelphia Runner Track Club /PUMA (Mid-Atlantic), Primetechniques (S. Calf.), Quick Silver Track Club of NJ (New Jersey), Raritan Valley Road Runners (07-0202), Shore Athletic Club of New Jersey (07-0101), So Cal Track - Fleet Feet (S. Calf.), South Texas Walking Club (S.Texas), Southwest Sprinters Track Club (Southwestern), Stars (Metropolitan), Synergy Track Club (Metropolitan), Syracuse Chargers Track Club (Niagara), Team XO (Oregon), Track Club L.A. (S. Calf.), U.S. Elite International Track & Field Club (Potomac Valley), VM Project (Niagara), VS Athletics Track Club (S. Calf.), Walk USA (Long Island). Westchester Track Club (Metropolitan), Willow Street AC (Adirondack), Winter Park Flyers Track & Field (Florida), and Zenith Velocity (Metropolitan). Subscribe to the Runner's Web Weekly Digest