by Larry Eder
TrackTown LIVE webcasts to showcase NCAA Outdoor T&F Championships
EUGENE, Ore. – The second edition of “TrackTown LIVE” debuts on Monday with the first of two live 90-minute webcasts showcasing the 2015 NCAA Men’s and Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Championships at historic Hayward Field.
Each of the two shows will feature a star-studded lineup of special guests as the NCAA Championships come to TrackTown USA for the 13th time, the most of any venue in the modern era of collegiate track and field.
The shows, which are a joint production of TrackTown USA and the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), will originate from Hayward Field on Monday, June 8 from 3:30-5 p.m. and Tuesday, June 9 from 1-2:30 p.m.
You can access the live webcasts at TrackTownLIVE.com. They will also be simulcast on USTFCCCA.org, Flotrack and Runnerspace.
The featured guests will be a stellar group of 14 student-athletes who have combined for 18 individual NCAA titles during their careers. Most will be joined on the set with their respective event or head coaches. Jordan Kent, a former three-sport star at Oregon, and Paul Swangard, the “Voice of Hayward Field,” will serve as co-hosts of the webcasts. The shows also will include multiple video highlights and recaps from the 2015 track and field season.
Here are five reasons why you won’t want to miss these exclusive behind-the-scenes webcasts:
• Rival coaches: Hear lively commentary on the team races from rival coaches Robert Johnson of Oregon and Mike Holloway of Florida. The Ducks and Gators are both expected to be in the thick of the men’s and women’s team races.
• The Year of the Vault: Arkansas’s Sandi Morris and Stephen F. Austin’s Demi Payne have rewritten the record book in the women’s pole vault this year. We’ll hear from the two most dominant female vaulters in collegiate history.
• Prominent athletes & coaches: Over the course of two 90-minute webcasts, we will have 11 segments featuring the very best student-athletes and their coaches with behind-the-scenes looks at their preparation for these championships.
• Oregon Track Club Elite: Get insights from the pros as we welcome Team Eaton – Ashton Eaton and Brianne Theisen-Eaton – plus Mac Fleet and Aisha Praught of the Eugene-based professional training group, Oregon Track Club Elite.
• Media analysis: Who are the team favorites? Best storylines? Best match-ups? Print journalists Chris Hansen of The Register-Guard and Ken Goe of The Oregonian join representatives of Flotrack and Runnerspace to offer their team and event predictions.
Here’s the timeline for both webcasts:
Monday, June 8
3:30-4:00 p.m.
• TrackTown USA President Vin Lananna and USTFCCCA CEO Sam Seemes
• Arkansas’s Sandi Morris and Stephen F. Austin’s Demi Payne
• OTC Elite’s Mac Fleet and Aisha Praught
• Clemson’s Natoya Goule and head coach Mark Elliott
4:00-4:30 p.m.
• Florida’s Marquis Dendy and jumps coach Nic Petersen
• Team/event predictions from Flotrack and Runnerspace
• The Bowerman with 2014 men’s winner Deon Lendore of Texas A&M
4:30-5:00 p.m.
• Shelbi Vaughan and Texas A&M head coach Pat Henry
• Omar McLeod and Arkansas men’s coach Chris Bucknam
• Expert analysis from Oregon coach Robert Johnson and Florida coach Mike Holloway
Tuesday, June 9
1:00-1:30 p.m.
• OTC Elite’s Ashton Eaton and Brianne Theisen-Eaton
• Michigan State’s Leah O’Connor and head coach Walt Drenth
• Villanova’s Jordy Williamsz and men’s coach Marcus O’Sullivan
• Southern Illinois’s Raven Saunders and head coach Connie Price-Smith
1:30-2:00 p.m.
• Texas Tech’s JaCorian Duffield and head coach Wes Kittley
• Akron’s Shawn Barber and head coach Dennis Mitchell
• Texas’s Morolake Akinosun and head coach Mario Sategna
2:00-2:30 p.m.
• USC’s Andre De Grasse and head coach Caryl Smith Gilbert
• Kansas’s Michael Stigler and head coach Stanley Redwine
• Team/event predictions from Ken Goe (The Oregonian) and Chris Hansen (The Register-Guard)
