IESA Headlines

2019 IESA Class A State Track and Field Meet Preview

For the 20th consecutive year, the EastSide Centre in East Peoria will host the Illinois Elementary School Association (IESA) Class A State Final Track and Field Meet. A total of 1,981 athletes will participate in the two-day meet this Friday and Saturday (May 10-11). East Peoria Robein Grade School serves as the host school and is assisted in the administration of the meet by Spring Bay Riverview.

The IESA state series in boys track and field began in 1932 and the girls state series began in 1972. This will be the 88th year for the boys and the 48th year for girls. A total of 579 member schools entered the 2019 state series. There are 289 schools in Class A and 251 of those schools will be represented at this year's state meet. The sectional qualifying meets were held last Saturday, May 4. The following link will list all qualifiers:

https://www.iesa.org/activities/tr/qualifiers_State_A.asp?Year=2019

There are 14 events in each of the four classes (7th grade girls; 7th grade boys; 8th grade girls; 8th grade boys). There will be a grand total of 56 events. Field event competition begins Friday at 11:00 a.m. In the field events, the preliminaries and finals are conducted on the same day that the respective event is held. Some field events are held on Friday and some are held on Saturday. The running events get under way Friday at 1:15 p.m. with the preliminaries of the hurdle event followed by the 400 m dash, the 1600 meter run and the preliminaries of the 100 m dash. Only the hurdle event and the 100-meter dash are held with preliminaries. The hurdles and 100 are run in just a preliminaries and a finals format. The individual winner of each heat will advance to the finals and the next fastest times (based on the number of heats to get to 8 total participants) will advance to the finals on Saturday. For all other running events, timed finals is the format. The best times from all the heats or sections in a respective running event determine final places in that event.

Competition on Saturday begins at 9:00 a.m. with the finals of the hurdles followed immediately by the finals of the 100 meter dash. Those eight races should be completed by 9:30. Running events will then resume with the 4 x 200 relay and run continuously throughout the day. After the conclusion of the 4 x 200 relay, then the 4 x 100 relay will be held, followed by the 200 meter dash; the 800 meter run and then the 4 x 400 meter relay. Field events that are not held on Friday will also get started at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday and will also continue throughout the day. The event is expected to conclude around 5:30 p.m. on Saturday. The complete time schedule for the weekend is available at the following link:

https://www.iesa.org/activities/tr/IESA-TR_Schedule.pdf

Results will be updated continuously throughout the weekend and all final results should be available by 7:30 p.m. Saturday evening, weather permitting, on the IESA home page www.iesa.org. Final results for all events that are concluded on Friday will be available Friday evening.

Single-session tickets will be on sale at the stadium each day. Tickets are priced at $10.00 for adults and $5.00 for students K-8 and seniors. Gates open to the general public at 9:30 a.m. Friday and at 7:30 a.m. Saturday.

Gates for the competitors and teams will open at 9:00 a.m. on Friday and 7:00 a.m. on Saturday. The Parade of Athletes will take place on Friday at 10:15 a.m. and at 8:20 a.m. on Saturday. The parade is a chance for the competitors to walk the track with their team amidst applause, music, and cheers from coaches, parents, family, and fans. At the conclusion of the Parade of Champions, the Athlete Oath will be read by four athletes who will be competing in this year's meet.

On Friday, Annalyn Harper from Colfax Ridgeview and Katey Flynn from Mt. Sterling Brown County will read the Athlete Oath. In 2018, Harper ran in the 400 and 800 at the state finals while Flynn ran in the 100, 400, and participated in the high jump.

On Saturday, Bodee Redieske from South Beloit and Emma Turner from Waterman Indian Creek will read the Athlete Oath. As 7th graders last year, Redieske ran in the 100 and 200 and was in the shot put while Turner took home 1st pace honors in the pole vault.

All athletes who place 1-8 in their respective event will be recognized on the infield after the conclusion of their event. The time schedule has periods built into it for presentation of the medals to the individuals and relay team members.

Fans are encouraged to visit the FanZone icon on the IESA home page for information that spectators should know regarding the meet.

Should weather impact the meet, any rescheduling that might be needed will be posted on the IESA website. Fans should not call the EastSide Centre asking for information. Any information related to the meet including suspension of the meet because of weather, if necessary, will be posted on the IESA website www.iesa.org.

For more information, please contact IESA Associate Executive Director and Track and Field Administrator Nicole Schaefbauer at nicole@iesa.org.