Selma wins bid for track meet
Published 11:03 pm Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Track athletes with schools in the Alabama Independent Schools Association (AISA) compete in their state track meet at Memorial Stadium in April. Next year, the renovated stadium will also play host to part of the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s (AHSAA) state track meet, hosting schools in Class 1A, 2A and 3A. -- File photo
When the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s Class 1A, 2A and 3A state track champions are crowned in May, it will be at Selma’s Memorial Stadium.
Selma Mayor George Evans announced at Tuesday’s Selma City Council meeting that after months of negotiation, the meet will be held in Selma.
Securing the meet, Evans said, is the product of massive renovations to the stadium and track.
“We are very fortunate that they have chosen Selma like they had for years and years,” he said. “There will be lots of people that will stay in hotels and visit our city so there are a lot of great possibilities.”
The city of Selma and AHSAA agreed to a three-year contract to keep the meet in Selma through 2014.
Selma City Council president Cecil Williamson said it was a gamble to put money into the renovations of Memorial Stadium.
Now, he said, that gamble will pay off.
“This is really big because it could generate enough revenue to pay for the track,” he said. “It’s always great to have lots of new people and athletes come to town.”
Selma Park and Recreation director Elton Reece said hosting the track meet could be much larger than just one event.
“This is really big for us because it helps us get back on the map like the old days,” he said. “It’s always great to be able to see such outstanding athletes and that’s what the state track meet brings.”
Business owners, Reece said, will benefit more than anyone when the crowds begin to arrive.
“It’s a financial boost for the city because it will fill up the hotel rooms and really help the restaurants,” he said. “It’s one of my favorite things to watch because you can sit in one spot and see just about every kind of athlete you want to see.”
The most recent meets were held on the campus of Birmingham Southern College. Several locations, Councilmember Susan Keith said, made a strong push for the meet.
“I was looking at this letter from the AHSAA and there were offers from Mountain Brook, Shades Valley, Scottsboro, Athens and Montgomery,” she said. “For them to choose Selma, that is wonderful. Coach Reece has worked very hard. I think we can say Selma is hanging with the big boys now.”
