Freedom Games adds to Aggies impressive list of track and field meets

GREENSBORO, April 17, 2008 --  In the almost four years since its official dedication, North Carolina A&T’s  Irwin Belk Track and Field Facility inside Aggie Stadium has hosted some of the most premiere events in the country.

The trend will continue this spring. At a press conference held at the Greensboro Coliseum’s Carlyle Room Thursday, event executive director Brooks Johnson announced the return of the International Friendship and Freedom Games to be held at N.C. A&T’s Irwin Belk Track. In process of introducing the event, Johnson introduced prep stars, local collegiate standouts, Olympic hopefuls and Olympians who will compete at Irwin Belk this weekend.

“Even if people don’t understand track and field, they understand the word Olympian,’’ said N.C. A&T director of track and field programs Roy Thompson. “People want to see the best in the world compete and we have the best in the world coming to A&T.”

There will be a live web broadcast on www.iamsport.com starting April 19 at 9 a.m. Admission is free.

The meet is designed to bring special recognition to the February 1, 1960 non-violent sit-in at a F.W. Woolworth lunch counter in downtown Greensboro by four North Carolina A&T freshmen named Jibreel Khazan (formerly known as Ezell Blair, Jr.), Franklin McCain, Joseph McNeil and David Richmond.

As blacks they were refused service despite sitting at the lunch counter until closing. The next day, the four men returned with 25 more protesters, sparking peaceful “Sit-In” movements all over the country. The men are known as the North Carolina A&T Four (Greensboro Four) today.

“We want to make it clear to athletes, the community and the nation that what the A&T Four did in 1960 is more than just a footnote in history,’’ said Johnson. “It was a catalyst for non-violent civil rights protest around the world. Athletics can’t take place in a vacuum. It has to have an impact on life. The more athletic events you have that have a real meaning and significance beyond just running, jumping and throwing, the more impact it has on everybody.”

The Old School Systems Management group brought a similar event to Texas Southern University, another historically black college or university. The organization wants to bring significant track and field meets to HBCUs with first-class facilities and a rich heritage.

Elite athletes from all over the country will compete, including Olympians in one or two various events. The range of athletes will be anywhere from age 10 to college student-athletes. The event planners want the meet to be an annual prelude to the prestigious Penn Relays. The International Friendship and Freedom Games is one of many outstanding meets N.C. A&T has hosted.

Irwin Belk Track was dedicated on July 25, 2004. Among the meets conducted at N.C. A&T since that time include the 2006 NCAA East Regional, the Nike Outdoor Meet and the North Carolina High School Athletic Association Track and Field Championships.