Not since 1997 has Illinois State hosted its own outdoor track and field meet, but that all will change this Saturday when the Redbirds unveil their new facility and play host to 14 other schools at the Redbird Classic.
Field events begin at 9 a.m. with the womens hammer, while running events start at 11 a.m. with the 5,000-meter run. Head coach Elvis Forde and his athletes have enjoyed warm, sunny weather all week, and combined with the new facility, both the men and women have made tremendous progress in their training.
The athletes enjoy training on the new track, and getting outside with the weather weve been having, its allowed us to make strides in training, Forde said. Im looking forward to hearing evaluations from other teams and what they think of our new facility.
Iowa, Marquette, Northern Illinois and Illinois are a few of the schools attending this weekends event, as are Missouri Valley Conference foes Southwest Missouri State and Bradley.
Were definitely looking forward to having SMS here, Forde said. Their womens team is the defending conference champion and they have a talented squad again this year. Im excited about the athletes getting to perform at home and I believe they will respond under those circumstances.
The Redbirds have remained hobbled by injuries throughout much of the outdoor season, but Forde is not willing to let that diminish the goals of the program.
Im not going to dwell on who we dont have out there, Forde said. We have to worry about who is healthy and who is able to perform. Injuries are a part of the crazy world of sports. Not having JaRod (Tobler) and Brian (Krantz) hurts, but we have to move forward and give others a chance to step up.
The Redbird Classic is one of two outdoor meets Illinois State will host this season. The new facility will also be the host site of the Missouri Valley Conference Championships on May 12-15. Forde feels that the university has shown a commitment to the track and field program and it has helped in the recruiting process.
We try to show recruits the commitment of the university and the commitment of the staff, Forde said. The new facility is a major step towards building a championship program.
And bringing in quality athletes has been priority number one for Forde since coming to campus in the summer of 2002.
Porter (Moser) was saying the other day that you have to go after the best recruits whether you get them or not, Forde said. Thats the same philosophy with us. We are looking to sign the best kids academically and athletically to build a quality program.
