The 31st USA Track & Field Annual Meeting was held in Indianapolis, Indiana which is also the home of USATF National Office and has played host to many historic track and field moments over the years, including the Inaugural IAAF World Indoor Track & Field Championships (1987), 1987 Pan American Games, 1988 Olympic Trials, 2005 National Junior Olympic Track & Field Championships, and four editions of the USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships – most recently in June 2007.

Listed below are some 2009 USATF Annual Meeting key points relating to the youth program: 

• The 2011 Junior Olympics bid was awarded to Wichita, Kansas.
• The 2011 Youth Outdoor Championships bid was awarded to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
• The 2011 Cross Country Championships bid was awarded to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
• Sub-bantam group (Primary) added as a National recognized age group by USATF. The addition of the sub-Bantam at the National Championship takes effective 2011. Athletes must be at least seven (7) years of age on the first day of the 2011 Youth Athletics National Championship to compete at the 2011 JO and 2011 Youth National Championship. In track and field, a competitor in the Sub Bantam, division may enter a maximum of 3 events. Also, Sub-Bantam Division will include the 1500 meter run and 4×400 meter relay events.
• Intermediate, Young Men/Women’s age divisions are now required to follow Rule 162.12 which states:

Except in Combined Events, any competitor(s) responsible for the false start shall be disqualified and a red card/flag shall be placed on the respective lane marker(s), or raised in front of the respective athlete(s). Please note that the rule for the other division remains the same as follows: For the Sub Bantam, Bantam, Midget and Youth age divisions, no penalty shall be imposed for the first false start, but the Starter shall disqualify the offender or offenders for the second false start. False starts are called on individuals, not on the field.

Congratulations to Track Houston Alumni who recently graduated from College and Law School: Christopher Dykes (Texas A & M), Naquanza Alfred (Rice), Sara Olayiwola (http://www.txstate.edu/be-a-bobcat/sara-olayiwola.html), Allie Booker (Texas Southern University-Thurgood Marshall School of Law), and Jerome Miller (Baylor).

Coach Earl Thomas was inducted into his home town Greenville, Texas Hall of Fame October 2, 2009. The Track Houston family congratulates Coach Thomas on this momentous occasion. We want the city of Greenville and all our friends to know that we are proud of Coach Thomas. He has been a dedicate Head Coach of Track Houston Youth Track Club where he made a positive influence on many athletes in the Houston, Texas area.

Excerpt from the Herald Banner

[. . . .Thomas is one of three Greenville brothers who went on to play in the NFL. His brothers Mike Thomas (1987) and Jimmy Thomas (1983) are already in the Greenville Hall of Fame. Mike was a standout running back for the Washington Redskins, earning rookie of the year honors. Thomas played for the San Francisco 49ers.

Earl Thomas was a 6-3, 215-pound receiver for the Houston Cougars in the late 1960s and 1970s, turning in a series of big plays during the 1970 season that included a 62-yard touchdown run against Syracuse, a 65-yard touchdown pass reception against Wyoming, a 47-yard touchdown pass reception against Wake Forest and a 47-yard touchdown pass to Elmo Wright against the Miami Hurricanes.

Thomas played six seasons in the NFL, from 1971-73 with the Chicago Bears, from 1974-75 with the St. Louis Cardinals and in 1976 with the Houston Oilers. He caught 106 passes in his NFL career for 1,651 yards and 14 TDs, plus rushed for 18 yards on six carries and returned one kickoff 82 yards for a touchdown. . . .]

This year in Greensboro, North Carolina, our midget girl squad won gold in the 4×100 and the 4×400 meter relays. Over the last three Junior Olympic meets this division has earned 63 medals and have won gold in the 4×400 meter relay each year.

The Young Men’s division, also took the 4×400 gold for a second straight year.  Traditionally a strong age division for Track Houston, the young men in past years have presented two squads in the Junior Olympics finals. In the intermediate boys division, Derreck Edwards also won gold in the Triple Jump.

Our athletes earned over 90 Junior Olympic medals which was more than any other track club in attendance at this national event. Medals included 13 Gold, 13 Silver and 6 Bronze in the sprints, hurdles, jumps, throws and relays.  For all Track Houston results from the 2009 USATF Junior Olympic, go to trackhouston.com and select the Schedule & Results menu.

Our results prove our methods and infrastructure foster excellence not only for our elite athletes, but also for the hundreds of children who join Track Houston each year having no prior track and field experience.

More than 50 Track Houston athletes traveled to Ypsilanti, Michigan to compete in the USA Youth Outdoor Track and Field Championships. This meet brought fierce competition from all across the country including teams from California, Florida, and Georgia.

As a result of our athletes training and hard work, they earned a total of 133 medals including many 1st place awards. In addition, National Team Championships were awarded to the Midget Boys with 92 points, Youth Boys with 65 points, and Intermediate Girls with 63 points.

A special note goes to the Midget Boys who won 1st place in the 4x100m relay, 1st and 2nd in the 4x400m relay, and 1st and 2nd in the 4x800m relay. The midget boys also earned many individual medals but their collective effort earned them the National Team Championship with 92 points. They earned the must points of any age group team participating in the meet this year, and have one of the highest scores of any midget boys team in history. The 2009 Track Houston midget boys team is only second to the 2001 Track Houston midget boys team who scored 113 points.

Our Primary Boys traveled to Orlando, Florida on July 2 through Monday July 6 to compete in the First Annual AAU Primary Meet held at Disney’s Wide World Sports Complex.

The AAU Primary National Championship has been designed to promote the grass roots activities and to add another National Championship meet to the AAU Athletics program. It also allows the Primary Athletes the opportunity to compete in single age groups 5, 6, 7, and 8.

Our primary boys did very well earning 14 medals at their first national meet. We are very proud of their accomplishments and look forward to their success at this meet in the coming years.

Click on picture for full view.

Track Houston athletes will contest the World Youth Trials on 6/29 in Michigan. The World Youth Trials is the younger version of the USA National Championships. It is the proving ground for future NCAA champions and US Olympians.

At the meet, the top two in each event will immediately travel to Italy to represent the USA at the international level.  Our club head coach, Joseph Felder is a member of the coaching staff.  This is a great honor and well deserved!  Coach Felder is a prior USATF Coach of the Year and co-heads the largest youth track club in the world…Track Houston! He leaves this weekend to travel with the team to Italy representing the USA.  We are very proud of him and this greatest achievement as a coach of young athletes.

Athletes who have earned the opportunity to participate in the World Youth Trials: Shahira Ehiemua (sprinter), Sylvonna Thompson (hurdles), Craishia Washington (sprinter), Isis Wilson (sprinter), and Kristen Mitchell (sprints). Each had to meet elite status times in their events to qualify for competition. Each are ranked tops in the national in their events.

Also note, athletes Matt Kosecki (UCLA signee) and Cameron LaCour (UofH signee) will compete in the USA Junior Nationals in Eugene, Oregon.  This event automatically advances each to the 2009 Junior Olympics. Thank you guys for representing Track Houston in your last youth events. We look forward to a highly successful collegiate career from both gentlemen.

Congratulations to our Midget Girls who took the top 6 places in the Javelin event at the USATF Gulf Association Championships on June 20. These young ladies showed poise, technique, and athleticism contributed by their hard work and coaching support. We are very proud of Haley Cossey, Kore Frazier, Chatori Lambert, Jordan Smith, Taylor Curry, and Bria Ceasar for a job well done.

We want to congratulate Track Houston alumnus Piaget Francois on an incredible academic career. She is graduating #2 in the 2009 class at CyFalls HS thus, she is the honored Salutorian for her class. The title comes from the salutatorian’s traditional role as the first speaker at a graduation ceremony, delivering the salutatory address.

Congratulations to the entire Francois family.  Mrs. Francois serves as the site registrar for our CyFalls practice site.

Track Houston Alumnus Nicole Jones claimed her third-straight Big 12 title in the women’s 1,000 meters. Jones, who won the event as a freshman to become the youngest champion in conference history, clocked a time of 2:46.51. Jones moves into a tie for first place in Baylor history with five career Big 12 titles (4 individual, 1 relay).
 
Good luck to our Track Houston Alumni at the NCAA Indoor Championship at Texas A&M on March 13-14, 2009.