The best of the best high school track and field athletes from throughout the province are converging on Langley this week.

Langley, and specifically the McLeod Athletic Park (MAP), are a preferred location for the BC High School Track and Field (BCTF) Championships that are happening Thursday through Saturday.

While the local track and most of its competition amenities are pretty standard, itB次元官网网址檚 the covered stadium and media booth used for staging, as well as the jumbotron that keep organizer Andrew Lenton and the team from the BCTFB次元官网网址檚 commission coming back to Langley again and again.

B次元官网网址淭he media tower makes a great staging area for the event, for us, from an organizational perspective,B次元官网网址� he said.

B次元官网网址淏ut the feedback we get from the spectators is that the jumbotron is something theyB次元官网网址檙e really wanting to keep, so weB次元官网网址檝e come back here.B次元官网网址�

He said the TownshipB次元官网网址檚 parks and rec staff have been B次元官网网址済reat to deal with.B次元官网网址� And the commissionB次元官网网址檚 long-standing relationship with the Langley Mustangs track and field club has made it possible to facilitate B次元官网网址渁n event of this magnitudeB次元官网网址� year after year.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a really great facility. The Township of Langley is great to work with, their parks and rec. The facilities are great,B次元官网网址� said Lenton, who is assistant coach at Maple Ridge Secondary and commissioner for the B.C. High School Track & Field Commission.

In addition to complimenting parks and rec, he said partnering with the Langley Mustangs track and field club to facilitate an event of this magnitude has been key.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 just a massive event,B次元官网网址� Lenton said Wednesday afternoon from MAP.

ItB次元官网网址檚 one of the largest high school competitions of any kind in the country, comparable only to the Ontario track and field event, he said.

It will be a full house, added Lenton, noting that once again there will be 2,400 students from 335 high school throughout the province competing.

B次元官网网址淲e cap out. We limit and restrict who can come into the championships,B次元官网网址� he explained. B次元官网网址淭hereB次元官网网址檚 many thousands and thousands more who have not been as lucky as to qualify or get a berth into the championships.B次元官网网址�

In addition to all the athletes expected, there are another 400 coaches, and countless parents and supporters coming to Langley this weekend.

B次元官网网址淭his is a huge undertaking,B次元官网网址� Lenton told the Langley Advance, explaining that these annual championships takes more than a year of prep time to arrange.

Speaking to that, he and the other commission directors started preparing for 2019B次元官网网址檚 competition last summer.

The championships are primarily held within the Lower Mainland, because of facilities and logistics.

Only on rare occasions does it get moved to the Island or Interior.

It was hosted at the Apple Bowl in Kelowna in 1972, and Nanaimo in 2015, Lenton recalled. But he confirmed it will be back in Kelowna again next year, and heB次元官网网址檚 already making plans for their return to Langley in 2020.

This is year six for Lenton at the helm.

B次元官网网址淚 thought I would do it for one year, and somehow IB次元官网网址檓 finding myself in year six. I donB次元官网网址檛 know how that happened,B次元官网网址� he said.

ItB次元官网网址檚 primarily the calibre of athletes he sees participating year after year, and their insatiable quest to better themselves, that keeps him coming back.

This yearB次元官网网址檚 competition includes 100, 200, 400, 800, and 1,500-metre races, long jump, shot put, high jump, javelin, triple jump, steeplechase, race walking, discus, and hammer for students Grade 8 through 12.

B次元官网网址淭his really is, in terms of high school track and field competition, as good as it gets,B次元官网网址� he said.

B次元官网网址淚n fact, We have some of the best athletes in the world competing,B次元官网网址� he added, encouraging sports enthusiasts to watch the performances.

B次元官网网址淭heyB次元官网网址檙e going to be exciting,B次元官网网址� Lenton said of the various showdowns. B次元官网网址淔or a lot of the kids, this is what theyB次元官网网址檝e been practicing and training for months and months.B次元官网网址�

While ThursdayB次元官网网址檚 action runs from 3 to about 8 p.m., Friday and Saturday are full days. Friday will see meets and competitions running from 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. and Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to about 5 p.m.

ThatB次元官网网址檚 long days, Lenton admitted. But to make it more palatable for spectators, most of the finals have been arranged between about 2 and 5 p.m. on both Friday and Saturday.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e loaded in all the finals in those times,B次元官网网址� or at least as many as they could accommodate.

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