United Athletic Conference

2006 NATIONAL POLE VAULT SUMMIT ?“ Reno gets set to host the 2006 National Pole Vault Summit. Led by Summit directors Bob Fraley of Fresno State and Lane Maestretti and Steve of UCS Spirt, pole vaulters from all over the country will attend the clinic at the Reno Hilton. For more information, visit www.polevaultsummit.com.

XBOX LIVE ATHLETES OF THE WEEK ?“ Boise State?™s Mattias Jons and Utah State?™s Kathryn Duhadway have been named the Xbox Live Western Athletic Conference men?™s and women?™s Indoor Track and Field Athletes of the Week, respectively.

Jons, a senior from Malmoe, Sweden, surpassed the NCAA automatic qualifying mark in the 35-pound weight throw with a winning mark of 69-7 (21.21m). His throw is the fourth best collegiate mark this season. The throw also broke his own school record in the event which was 67-2.25 set in 2005. Jons also won the shot put with a mark of 53-7 (16.33m).

Duhadway, a sophomore from Logan, Utah, set a school record in the pole vault with a mark of 3.97m (13-0.25). The mark is not only an NCAA provisional height, but a George Nelson Fieldhouse record. The award is her second in as many weeks.

Other Men Nominated: Russ Winger, Idaho and Kevin Liu, Utah State
Other Women Nominated: Eleni Kafourou, Boise State

Click here for a .pdf version of the Weekly Indoor Trand & Field Notes and Top Performances.

TRACKWIRE NATIONAL RANKINGS ?“ Click on the following links for the men and women's Trackwire and Dandy Dozen Rankings.

Trackwire Rankings
Dandy Dozen - Women | Men
NCAA Qualifiers - Women | Men

RUN FOR THE DREAM A SUCCESS ?“ World records. Personal-bests. An opportunity to watch track and field Olympians and up-and-coming stars compete at their highest level.

All of those could be witnessed at Fresno State?™s inaugural Run For The Dream indoor track meet. The historical event was witnessed by an enthusiastic crowd of 5,806, as fans were treated to a 12-hour celebration of a sport that is one of the most tradition-rich in the Valley.

The meet was created to honor the memory of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., while presenting the community with an opportunity to honor track and field stars of the past along with those of the present and future.

"Our focus all along was to involve the fans and create a family atmosphere," said director of track and field Bob Fraley, who enters his 26th overall season with the Bulldogs. "Judging by the community support and excitement and appreciation from our competitors, I believe we reached our goals. Today was a great stage to showcase our arena, the fans, the athletes and the sport of track and field."

WAC ENTERS NEW ERA ?“ The WAC is a nine-team league with the additions of Idaho, New Mexico State and Utah State following the departures of Rice, SMU, UTEP and Tulsa. It is the third time in conference history that the WAC will be comprised of nine teams (1980-91 and 2000). The WAC will also add CS Northridge as an affiliate member for the Indoor season for both men and women.

WAC CHAMPIONSHIP RETURNS TO BOISE ?“ The 2006 edition of the WAC Championship returns to Idaho Sports Center and Jacksons Track in Nampa, Idaho. The meet will be held Feb. 22-25 with the multi-events on Feb. 22 and 23, and the preliminaries and finals on Feb. 24 and 25.

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP ?“ The 2006 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championship returns to Fayetteville, Ark., March 10-11. The University of Arkansas is hosting the event.