For many years, while the American track and field circuit snoozed during the summer months, athletes would migrate to Europe to compete on the international level during Europe’s thriving summer season.
This meant that during the summer, professional track and field in America is basically non-existent, but that is all about to change.
In May of this year, TrackTown, USA announced a new professional league for American track and field athletes set to begin this summer titled the TrackTown Summer Series.
“One of the big things is the opportunity for us to use this as a platform to build an interest in the United States,” TrackTown president Vin Lananna said at a press conference on Thursday.
The league will consist of four teams from San Francisco, Philadelphia, New York and Portland. The teams are made up of 36 athletes, 16 of which (eight men and eight women) were selected through a draft that took place on June 25. The remaining 20 athletes on each team were selected through free agency.
Notable athletes include Nike Oregon project runner and former University of Oregon star Matthew Centrowitz, who will be competing for New York in the 800-meter, and Jasmine Todd, who will be competing in the long jump for Philadelphia.
The league will also feature 17 athletes bound for the Rio Olympics, which begins on August 5. The inaugural meet will air on ESPN and take place on July 29 at Hayward Field, giving the Olympians an extra meet to prepare for Rio.
“We certainly want to have athletes continue to promote their brand throughout the world,” said Lananna. “We really want them to promote their brand in the United States, and there’s no better place than to do it here.”
Oregon Track Club Elite’s Ben Blankenship is thankful for the chance to compete without having to fly to another continent.
“Having the opportunity to run here at Hayward; back on my home track with the team environment, and kind of the first meet of its kind, is one of the best opportunities I could ask for,” Blankenship said at the press conference.
That isn’t the only appealing aspect of the league for the athletes; the inaugural meet gives them a chance to win some prize money. Each member of the winning team will earn $1,000. The top six finishers in each of the 20 events will win $4,000 for first place, $3,000 for second, $2,000 for third, and so on. The athletes that were selected in the draft were also compensated.
Though there will only be one meet this summer, Lananna hopes to expand it to three meets by next summer and five meets by 2018.
“I can’t think of a better way to spend a Friday night in the summer in this community than coming out to Hayward Field and seeing world class track and field,” TracTown CEO Michael Reilly said.
Follow Hannah Bonnie on Twitter @hbonnie03