masters nationals

The new, improved Hilmer Lodge Stadium hosted USATF Masters National Combined Events Championships in 2023.

General August 27, 2024

Mt. SAC to USATF: We won’t host 2025 masters outdoor nationals without money guarantee

Mt. San Antonio College — home of the early spring Mt. SAC Relays — is no stranger to big meets. The Walnut community college east of Los Angeles was awarded the 2020 Olympic Trials but lost it thanks to worries over pending lawsuits (later resolved). The school’s beautifully rebuilt Hilmer Lodge Stadium hosted the USATF masters combined event national meet in 2023 and the U.S. Para National Championships this past March. So in December 2022, when Mt. SAC was awarded the 2025 USATF Masters National Outdoor Championships, expectations were high for another great meet. Now those hopes have crashed. Mt….

Neringa Jakstiene, (575) in front row, celebrates with fellow Ironlady pentathletes after her world record outing. Photo by Ken Stone

Records July 19, 2024

W60 Neringa Jakstiene clobbers world records in pentathlon and long jump as heat sends man to ICU

Last March at Chicago indoor masters nationals, new 60-year-old Neringa Jakstiene set world records in the pentathlon, high jump and 60-meter hurdles. What to do for an encore at Sacramento masters outdoor nationals? On Thursday, Day 1 of the meet at Sacramento’s American River College, she set a W60 world record in the outdoor pentathlon — and took down long-standing American records by Phil Raschker in the 80-meter hurdles and long jump. Also: crushing Christiane Schmalbruch’s 4.75 (15-7) world record in the long jump. Neringa’s series on a day in the 90s: 13.00 in the 80-meter hurdles, 9.13 meters (29-11½)…

Ten years ago, Spokane City College hosted our meet. This year, it's at Eastern Washington University.

General July 5, 2018

Spokane is rare Left Coast nationals, so don’t complain about cost, travel

Starting in 1968 (yes, 50 years ago), seven of the first 10 masters outdoor nationals were held on the West Coast — six in David Pain’s home of San Diego and once in Gresham, Oregon. But in the past 20 years, the Left Coast has hosted our showcase meet only four times — Sacramento 2010, Spokane 2008 and Eugene 2003 and 2000. (I don’t count mid-Pacific Honolulu 2005.) So cry me a river when people complain about the cost of 2018 Spokane nationals. Some are griping about this year’s locale on Facebook. But the ones on the East Coast have…

WMA President Stan Perkins (left)

International May 11, 2018

Masters nationals in India are all over the map — and calendar

Last month, the 38th National Masters Athletics Championships of India were held at Mangala Stadium in Mangaluru. On Wednesday, it was reported that the 40th National Masters Athletics Championships 2019 will be held in Manipur “per a statement issued by Masters Athletics Federation of India (MAFI).” Say what? How did a year get skipped? Don’t ask. And don’t tell WMA that the 39th National Masters Athletics Championships were held at Sree Kanteerava Stadium, Bengaluru, in late February. The mess of competing national governing bodies continues unabated in 1.3 Billion Land. Even though a year ago I reported how India’s version…

Records May 3, 2018

W90 Heather Lee adds 10K walk WR to stockpile, lowers own 5K record

Simon Butler-White, our Aussie stringer, reports that New South Wales race walker Heather Lee “sliced and diced” two W90 world records at last weekend’s Australian masters nationals in Perth. She took down WRs in the 10K road walk and 5000 track walk. Simon writes: “Heather, 91, set world records in the 3000 (24:56.97) and 5000 (42:36.49) walks at the Australian Masters Games in Tasmania just last October but was determined to secure the ‘missing’ 10K WR that would give her the trifecta of W90 marks. The WR over that distance – 1:31:21 – was set by Romania’s Elena Pagu at…

International May 2, 2018

M85 David Carr’s radical range at Aussie nationals: 200 to 2K steeple

When you get to Malaga for 2018 outdoor worlds, buy a brew for your Aussie rivals. They’ve endured a long season. How long? They held their outdoor nationals last weekend in Perth. Now they have to peak again in five months. I suspect they’ll do fine up over in Spain. They have WMA superstars, of course. Perhaps the top performer in the four-day meet at Venues West in Perth was M85 steepler/sprinter David Carr. Yup, he ran the 200 in 38.84, 400 in 1:21.93 (which age-grades to 45.46), 800, 1500 and the 2K steeple in 11:10.86 (age-graded as a 3K…