The 40th Annual Simplot Games Promises Excitement On and Away from the Track

For Immediate Release
Date February 1, 2018
Contact: Katie Damron (208) 220-5307
E-mail: media@simplotgames.com
  

The 40th Annual Simplot Games Promises Excitement On and Away from the Track

 
Over the past four decades, Simplot Games has built a tradition of competition and meaningful experiences for high school track and field athletes. This year the 40th annual Simplot Games will carry on that tradition with athletes, coaches, spectators, and Olympians congregating in Idaho State University’s Holt Arena to join in the unique experience of the Games.
Simplot Games has grown into the nation’s premier high school indoor track and field event. The event has remained an increasingly competitive meet by attracting widespread national and international competition. This year, Simplot Games will welcome more than 2,100 athletes from the United States, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia.
Several features set Simplot Games apart from other track and field meets. Simplot Games attracts nationally ranked competitors but remains an open meet, meaning no qualifying time or mark is needed for an athlete to participate, allowing local and regional talent to compete at a larger event. Additionally, Simplot Games has immense community support, relying on the work of hundreds of volunteers and sponsors who share the vision of the Games.
“Simplot Games really speaks to the unity of the community,” said Lisa Woodland, Executive Director of Simplot Games. “The hard work and dedication of our volunteers and sponsors enables us to continue the Games each year and give athletes a meaningful, unique experience.”
Off The Track
Though the events bring plenty of excitement, some of the highlights of Simplot Games take place away from the track and field. This year will include some new activities for athletes and welcome some new guests, as well as some of the favorite events presented each year.
The Simplot Games After Dark Party will be held at Pocatello’s Outer Limits Fun Zone, an indoor recreation center offering arcade games, black light miniature golf, laser tag, and mini-bowling. The After Dark event gives Simplot Games participants the opportunity to mingle with other athletes and the Olympians.
Breakfast with Fosbury and Friends will feature Harry “Butch” Reynolds, a gold and silver medalist in the 1988 Olympics. Reynolds will speak and then field audience questions at the breakfast event. This will be Reynolds’s first time at Simplot Games.
Tyson Gunter will also be making his Simplot Games debut as a special guest Olympian. Gunter is a local athlete who competed in the Rio 2016 Paralympics Games as a high jumper.
This year, athletes will have the opportunity to meet and mingle with Olympians Dick Fosbury, Andre Phillips, Stacy Dragila, Butch Reynolds, and Tyson Gunter at the Games.
Forty Years of Fast
The first Simplot Games in 1979 marked the beginning of a legacy. The once small meet has become a staple in the indoor track and field schedules for many high school athletes from near and far.
Thousands of athletes have competed at Simplot Games over the past forty years. In many ways, Simplot Games is a launching pad for collegiate and Olympic careers in athletics. Some competitors have taken their talents from Simplot Games to the world stage at the Olympic Games. The potential of the young athletes is evident during Simplot Games where their hard work and dedication can be seen as they pass batons, leap over hurdles, or put a shot.
It is within Holt Arena during Simplot Games weekend that meet and national records are broken, personal and team victories are celebrated, and lifelong connections are made.
“This year we will look back over the last forty years to appreciate how Simplot Games started and how far it has come,” said Woodland, “but we also look forward to the next decades of Simplot Games.”
Simplot Games will be February 15-17 at Idaho State University’s Holt Arena. A complete schedule of events is available at www.simplotgames.com. Admission is free to the public. Follow Simplot Games on Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, and Instagram for updates and giveaways.
More than 2,100 athletes will come from across the U.S., Canada and Australia to participate in the 40^th annual Simplot Games. Simplot Games remains the nation’s premier high school indoor track and field event. Sponsored by the J.R. Simplot Company since 1979, the Simplot Games are held at Idaho State University’s Holt Arena in Pocatello, Idaho.
For more information on Simplot Games, please visit our website at www.simplotgames.com. You may also contact Lisa Woodland at (208) 235-5604 or Simplot Games Media Team at media@simplotgames.com.
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Simplot Games
The Nation’s Premiere High School Track & Field Event
Pocatello, Idaho
(208) 235-5604
See Simplot Games on Twitter @SimplotGames, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube
www.simplotgames.com