Numerous fan events surrounding 90th Kansas Relays

Kansas Relays Central | Tickets | Schedule

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Field events held on the streets of Lawrence, food trucks and fireworks are just a few of the exciting activities that are set to take place in conjunction with the Kansas Relays later this week. The 90th edition of the meet is taking place at the Jayhawks’ state-of-the-art track facility at Rock Chalk Park, April 19-22.
 
Street Pole Vault – Thursday (April 20), 5:30 pm

  • Lawrence will again be the site of one of the more unique track events in the United States as the Kansas Relays will feature a Street Pole Vault Exhibition for the second-consecutive year. The event is set for 5:30 p.m., on Thursday, April 20 and will be held in the parking lot of the Salty Iguana restaurant near the corner of Sixth and Wakarusa in west Lawrence.
  • This year’s event will feature five males and five females, all professionals, in a team-style competition. There will be two runways, one designated for the males and one designated for the females, with the vaulters taking turns on each runway. A male and female will make up each team, with the squad that posts the highest combined clearance declared the winner.
  • In addition to the pole vault, Salty Iguana will offer food and beverages for sale in the parking lot during the event, weather permitting. Appearances by Big Jay and Baby Jay will also be a part of the festivities.

 
Downtown Shot Put – Friday (April 22), 6 pm

  • For the seventh-consecutive year, a collection of the world’s top shot putters will hit the streets of Lawrence to take part in the now-iconic Downtown Shot Put competition on Friday, April 21. The event, which will be held in conjunction with the 90th Kansas Relays, is again set to be held at Eighth & New Hampshire Streets in downtown Lawrence and will begin at 6 p.m.
  • Five of the top-25 ranked throwers in the world are scheduled to compete, including 2016 Olympic champion and Olympic record-holder Ryan Crouser, who will compete in Lawrence for the first time. Canadian Olympian Tim Nedow, the defending Downtown Shot Put champion, Nigerian Olympian Stephen Mozia, Kurt Roberts and Ryan Whiting are part of a strong field of eight throwers.

 
Lane10 – Friday-Saturday (April 21-22), All Day

  • For the third-straight year at the Kansas Relays, fans will have an opportunity to enjoy their favorite food and beverages at “Lane10”, which will be open during Friday and Saturday’s events. Lane10 will be located just north of the Rock Chalk Park track and will be open to all fans in attendance. The area will be open beginning Friday morning and remain open until Saturday evening.
  • Fans will have a wide variety of food and treat vendors to choose from, including Salty Iguana GreenGo, Burgers by Biggs, Pizza Hut, Chick-fil-a, Blend, Snoflower and G’s Jamaican.
  • Lane10 will include the Family Fun Zone, complete with inflatable games and other activities for the whole family. The National Guard will also bring M-1117 ASV and HIMARS military vehicles to be put on display.
  • This year’s KU Relays will also feature a Happy Hour, to open at 5:30 p.m., Saturday near the south end of the Rock Chalk Park concourse, complete with beer and wine provided by Salty Iguana and 23rd Street Brewery. Fans 21 years and older can purchase a Happy Hour ticket for $5 (one beverage), $10 (two beverages) and $15 (three beverages).

 
Scored Invitational – Saturday (April 22), 4:30-9pm

  • For the third-straight year, the Kansas Relays will feature a scored team competition as four teams on both the men’s and women’s side will square off.
  • Kansas will go head-to-head with California, Southern Illinois, Minnesota and UMKC in the competition that will span 40 men’s and women’s track & field events.
  • At the 2016 Kansas Relays, the Nebraska men’s and women’s teams swept the quadrangular competitions with the NU men coming out on top with 226 points, while the Husker women amassed 207 points for the win.
  • The format of the quadrangular will be similar to other scored collegiate meets such as the Big 12 Championships and the NCAA Championships. Individuals will earn points based on their finish in their respective events. Only the top-two finishers from each team will be scored in each individual event, and be allowed only one team in the relays.

 
Fireworks – Saturday (April 22), 8:50pm

  • The Kansas Relays will end with a bang, literally, as a fireworks show is scheduled to close out the event on Saturday night. The show will be run in conjunction with the meet’s final event, the men’s invitational 4×400-meter relay, at 8:49 p.m.

 
MORE ON THE 90th KANSAS RELAYS
Now in its 90th year, the Kansas Relays returns as one of the most historic and popular collegiate and high school track & field competitions in the nation. This year’s meet is setting up to be another exciting event that will feature thousands of collegiate, post-collegiate and high school track athletes from across the United States in action over four days at Kansas’ state-of-the-art facility, Rock Chalk Park. The meet will again feature an exciting scored team competition during the final evening of competition, with the host Kansas competing against California, Southern Illinois, Minnesota and UMKC.
 
 
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