USA Track & Field cancels indoor championships; what's up with collegiate XC/indoor track?

USA Track & Field announced Friday that the USATF Indoor Championships (including the multi events), originally scheduled for February 20-21 in Albuquerque, N.M., have been canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

In a release, USATF said that its COVID-19 Working Group of medical and scientific experts worked diligently to develop a rigorous set of COVID-19 protocols for conducting the Championships. However, it has become apparent that statewide restrictions in New Mexico and other logistical challenges for the event are too severe to overcome.

A few weeks earlier, World Athletics announced that the 2020 world indoor championships, which were rescheduled for March 19-21 in Nanjing, China, is now scheduled for 2023.

WHAT'S UP WITH DIVISION I CROSS COUNTRY/INDOOR TRACK?

Meanwhile, we are about finished with the first full week of 2021, and in visiting the web sites of the five Washington Division I schools, there are no schedules posted for either cross country or indoor track & field.

According to an article posted on letsrun.com, the University of Washington, which has the biggest indoor track and field facility in the West Coast, is meeting with King County officials early next week to present a proposal on how the school can host indoor track meets this winter under current COVID-19 protocols.

One thing that is a certainty: assuming the University can hosts meets, the number of athletes and schools participating will be dramatically smaller than in previous years, with meets limited to Division I schools and possibly a small field of post-collegians.

In its January 2021 issue, Track & Field News has the UW hosting meets on January 16, 29, February 12-13, and 26-27, with the caveat of TBC (to be confirmed) next to the dates.

The magazine also states that the Western Athletic Conference, which Seattle University is a member of, has cancelled their indoor championships.

Eastern Washington and Washington State's indoor schedule could be dramatically shortened, as the University of Idaho's Kibbie Dome will not be available for competition, due to the facility being used for football, and the loss of Boise State's indoor facility after the school sold their track. Additionally, Washington State's indoor bubble is no longer a track-only facility, as it's being converted to a turf field for soccer, football and baseball. It is presumed that Gonzaga will focus on cross country, as their program is distance oriented.

In the same letsrun.com article, it says that the western United States will be a hotbed of action in cross country, with Las Vegas the center of regular season action.

The University of Nevada/Las Vegas is hosting two major meets on February 1st and the 19th at Craig Ranch Regional Park in North Las Vegas. Letsrun.com is reporting that Stanford, Notre Dame, Northern Arizona, Iowa State, Washington, Colorado & BYU will have squads at one and possibly both meets.

Gonzaga is reportedly planning on sending a team to one of the Vegas meets, in preparation for the West Coast Conference meet, which will be held on that course on February 24th.

Seattle University is tentatively scheduled to host the Western Athletic Conference cross country championships on Saturday February 27th at the Jefferson Park Golf Course, while the University of Washington is scheduled to host the Pac-12 cross country championships on March 5th at Chambers Bay Golf Course in University Place, south of Tacoma.

As of now, there are no plans for any of the five NCAA D1 schools to host any cross country meets.

Stay tuned, and keep checking your favorite school's track and cross country web site for updated information.

NOTE: USA Track & Field, letsrun.com, and Track & Field News contributed to this report.

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