Track & Field

YouthSportsParent's Track & Field Expert: Meredith Rainey Valmon

Meredith Rainey Valmon is a two-time Olympian in track & field. Her athletic career began when she was eight years old in Brooklyn, New York and spanned 24 years, ending in 2000. During that time she became a schoolgirl track and field champion, captain of her high school volleyball and basketball teams and an NCAA Champion. In 1989 when she won the NCAA Outdoor 800m Championship, she became the first woman in Ivy League history to win an individual NCAA Championship in any sport. In 1990 Meredith was selected as a recipient of the NCAA's prestigious Today's Top Six Award, given annually to the six most outstanding graduating student-athletes in the nation.

Featured Blogs & Forums

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Doping in Track & Field: Is Everyone on the "Juice"? [9]

Track & Field: Fun, Fast, and Fit!

Track & Field: a collection of sports events that involve running, throwing and jumping.

Track & Field is a great sport for children who like to run, jump and throw. If your child is not allowed to play contact sports (for medical reasons or safety reasons) track & field is a great way for them to still compete. Track and field has running events (sprints, distance events, hurdles, and relays) and field events (throwing events and jumping events).

Most high schools have track & field teams, and USA Track & Field (USATF) offers two-year age group divisions starting at age 10-and-under through 17-18, and a popular Junior Olympics program. Track and field is a great non-contact sport for children and offers them a way to get plenty of exercise, compete, and make friends!

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Featured Articles

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Overuse Running Injuries: Weak Hip Muscles Common Cause [12]

Overuse running injuries such as patellofemoral pain syndrome (so-called "runner's knee"), and Achilles tendonitis may have more to do with weakened hip muscles than the sheer number of miles an athlete runs.

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Shin Splints: Causes, Treatment and Prevention [13]

Shin splints are an inflammation of the tendons attaching the shin muscles to the tibia (shin bone) and a warning sign that, for whatever reason, the muscles are unable to handle the stress being placed on them. They are the number one overuse injury in track and field. If you suspect your child has shin splints, he should be seen by his doctor because sometimes what looks like shin splints are actually tibia stress fractures.

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Getting Started in Track & Field [14]

Friends and acquaintances who know my track background frequently ask me, "How do I get my child started in track & field?" Because track & field programs are not as ubiquitous as soccer or basketball programs, it may not be as easy as going to the nearest recreation center or Boys & Girls club. Yet youth track & field, or age group track & field, as it is called in the sport, is a thriving activity nationwide and most communities have track clubs for kids. It's just a matter of knowing how to find them.

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Stress Fractures In High School Athletes: A Growing Problem [15]

New research suggests that more intense training and inadequate diet are placing high school athletes at significant risk for developing stress fractures in the bones of the back, hip, leg and foot, with girls more likely to suffer such overuse injury and at an earlier age than boys.

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Cushioned-Heel Running Shoes May Hurt Performance, Study Finds [16]

Many of today's running shoes feature a heavy cushioned heel, but new research presented at the 2013 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) says that the shoes may alter an adolescent runner's biomechanics in a way that adversely effects performance.

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