Drake Relays
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| Sport | Track and field |
|---|---|
| Founded | (First held in April of 1910) |
| Country | Des Moines, Iowa, United States |
| Qualification | Top Track and field Athletes |
| Related competitions |
Penn Relays |
| Official website | drakerelays |
The Drake Relays (officially the Drake Relays presented by Hy-Vee due to sponsorship) is an outdoor track and field event held in Des Moines, Iowa, United States, in Drake Stadium on the campus of Drake University. It is regarded as one of the top track and field events in the United States.
The inaugural Drake Relays were held in 1910. The first meet drew just 100 spectators and 82 athletes, all from Des Moines-area colleges and high schools. The second year, however, drew 250 athletes and a crowd of some 500 spectators. In 1914, the Relays saw its first world record set. By 1922, the Relays had been expanded into a two-day event that drew 10,000 fans and became the first major track and field event broadcast on the radio. For the 1926 Relays, Drake Stadium was completed on the site of the prior host, Haskins Field.
Women's events were added beginning in 1961 with Wilma Rudolph competing in the 100 meters. The 1966 Relays began a streak of 48 consecutive Saturdays with a sellout. In 1969, a $175,000 tartan track was installed. The events at the Relays would go metric beginning in 1976; the track was rebuilt in a 400-meter oval in 1978. The track oval was resurfaced in 1983 and was renamed the "Jim Duncan Track" to honor the long time relays public address announcer in 1988.
Hundreds of Olympic gold medalists have competed at Drake Stadium including Caitlyn Jenner (as Bruce),Michael Johnson, Carl Lewis, Jesse Owens, Wilma Rudolph, Frank Shorter, Gwen Torrence, and Jeremy Wariner. Hundreds more Drake Relays competitors have gone onto compete in the Olympic Games, including 113 former athletes at the 2012 Olympic Games.
In 2006, a Friday night session was added for the first time. In 2010, the Grand Blue Mile, a one-mile road race in downtown Des Moines, was added as the first athletic event. The current week of festivities begins with a parade on Saturday, continues with a Beautiful Bulldog Contest (Drake's mascot) on Sunday, the Grand Blue Mile on Tuesday, and an indoor pole vault on Wednesday with the decathlon and heptathlon beginning Wednesday and concluding alongside the distance carnival on Thursday.
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