FLORIDA YOUTH RUNNING ASSOCIATIONFLYRA.ORG
SAVE THE DATE! November 13, 2010Download the FlyerThe 1st Annual Florida Middle School Cross Country State Championship Meet......is presented by the Florida Youth Running Association. We are a not-for-profit organization founded in 2010 by parents, coaches and running enthusiasts. Our mission is to help Florida's youth discover the joy and benefits of running. Our key objective is to inspire more middle and elementary school students to become runners. Our hope is that in doing so we will attack the alarming rise in youth obesity and see greater numbers of youth going on to their high schools and becoming members of cross country and track teams where they can further develop their talents and bring success to themselves, their schools, communities and the state of Florida. We are dedicated to providing a rewarding championship event for Florida's middle school and elementary school runners, to introduce them to running in a large event prior to high school, to promote sportsmanship, and to encourage the habit of daily running for a lifetime. We believe that running instills discipline, focus, and principles of hard work which inspire people to be the best that they can be in every area of their lives...as students, athletes, friends, family members, and citizens. WhoChampionship Division 3K is open to Florida girls and boys in 6th thru 8th grades. Development Division 3K open to athletes of all fitness levels, capabilities between 3rd and 8th grades. WhatPremier running event for Florida's middle school runners to decide 2010 state XC champions. Where
Sun'nFun Lakeland Regional Airport Lakeland Florida
When
Saturday November 13, 2010WhyTo bring the best Florida middle school runners and teams together, to acclimate these runners to a large championship race, and to recognize the efforts of remarkable coaches! Championship Race, Individual Qualification StandardsThese time standards are to be used as a guideline, not a hard and fast rule, as to which race to put your athletes into. They are meant to err on the side of being inclusive, but also to pit the top athletes together. Coaches are encouraged to use their best judgment in placing an athlete in the championship or developmental division.
Championship Race, Team QualificationWhile the championship division is individually technically an open, only teams that have qualified will be included in the team championship scoring--no other teams will be scored. There will be two types of qualifying meets: standard qualifiers and super-qualifiers. Standard qualifiers meets will have one team qualify per five teams full teams (5 runners) competing, with a minimum of one qualifying spot if less than five full teams. This status will be awarded mostly to county and conference championship meets, but also potentially regionally significant invitational meets as well. Super-qualifiers will have an automatic five qualifying spots granted (unless the 1 per 5 ratio would be greater). This is a designation reserved for the state's largest invitational meets that typically attract elite competition from around the state. Team EligibilitySince the meet is open to all individuals, everyone is welcome to come and participate. If you are not a part of the team championship, you can wear whatever jersey you like including school, club, or otherwise. HOWEVER, teams that will be scored into the team championship must meet the qualification requirements above. First and foremost we want to encourage teams to compete as schools. Because of various rules and regulations of the various county or state athletic associations, we realize that some teams may not be officially allowed to represent their school in this meet. Athletes forming a team that is scoring in the team championship must have competed as a team and qualified at one of the qualifying meets. Only athletes, who competed at that meet, representing the same group of athletes, are eligible to represent that team at the championship... regardless of what jersey or name you compete under at the middle school state championship. Athletes who did not score or competed in a sub-varsity race at that qualifying meet ARE ELIGIBLE to compete (and score) for that team at the state meet. The purpose of this is to prove that the team did compete as a team during the regular season... and are not a hand-picked all-star team, which is strictly forbidden. While we may not be able to check each and every athlete to verify this, we are asking coaches to abide by the honor system here. Should an ineligible athlete be suspected of competing for a team at the state championship, any coach may file a protest. If the allegation is found to be true, the team will be immediately disqualified and forfeit all points at the championship. How many athletes can compete in the meet?You may run an unlimited number of athletes in both the championship and developmental races. For team championship purposes, the top five will score and next two will displace. You will not need to designate ahead of time who your scorers will be. What are the qualifying meets?We will be announcing a full list of qualifiers as soon as possible. If you want to inquire about making your meet a qualifier, please send meet information to Jason Byrne (jason@flrunners.com) so that the meet information will be added to the master calendar. Those details will be forwarded to the meet planning committee for consideration. As a rule of thumb recognized county or conference championships (public or private) that run a quality meet and report complete meet results to flrunners.com will be given the rubber stamp as a standard qualifier (1-to-5 qualifying teams ratio). All other meets will be considered on a case-by-case basis. In addition to known county/conference championship meets, these meets are currently recognized as qualifiers (* = super-qualifier):
How to Sign Up, Register OnlineOnline registration is now open. Since the meet has an open aspect in addition to the team championship, all teams and individuals may go ahead enter their athletes and plan on attending now. Athletes and teams of all levels are welcome. Entry FeeThe entry fee will be just $10 per athlete, with a $50 maximum per team ($100 max per school).
ONLINE REGISTRATION: Register Here Getting to the CourseThe course is conveniently located just outside of Lakeland, along the I-4 Corridor between Tampa and Orlando. It can be reach either via County Line Rd (Polk-Hillsborough County Line) or the Polk Parkway, both of which connect with I-4. It is located at 4175 Medulla Road, Lakeland, FL 33811. This event is sanctioned by and insured by USA Track & Field. |
COUNTDOWN TO THE STATE MEET
Fri, September 3, 2010
Be A Runner! |
