Posted: June 20, 2006

Athletics: 2006 Finish Line USA Junior Track & Field Championships begin Wednesday

Present and future Olympians are converging on Indianapolis to display their sprinting, throwing and jumping abilities at the 2006 Finish Line USA Junior Track & Field Championships.

The Championships take place June 21-25 at the IU Michael A. Carroll Track & Soccer Stadium on the campus of IUPUI in downtown Indianapolis. It is the selection meet for the 2006 World Junior Championships in Beijing, China. They are being held in conjunction with the 2006 AT&T USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, the final stop of USATF's 2006 Visa Championships Series. It is the selection meet for the IAAF World Cup of Athletics, which will take place later this summer.

The 2006 AT&T USA Outdoor Championships will be televised live on ESPN2 from 6-8 p.m. on Saturday, June 24, and from 5-7 p.m. on Sunday, June 25. All times are Eastern.

Over 600 junior athletes ranging from 14 to 19 years-old will compete. The top entries include the following:
*University of Florida freshman Willie Perry will compete in the men's 100 and 200 meters. Perry has the fastest 100m and 200m time in the world for juniors so far this year (10.26, 20.42).
*2006 Nike Outdoor Nationals 400 meter champion Jacob (JT) Scheuerman will compete in the junior men's 400 meters.
*2006 Nike Outdoor Nationals 2-mile champion and 2005 Foot Locker Cross Country champion Andrew (AJ) Acosta headlines the junior men's 1,500 meters.
*Brigham Young University freshman Christopher Carter, who took third at the 2006 NCAA Championships, will compete in the junior men's 400 meter hurdles.
*2005 USA Youth Outdoor hammer throw champion and 2006 Nike Outdoor Nationals champion Walter Henning will look to claim the title in the junior men's hammer throw.
*2005 USA Junior Outdoor pole vault champion Michael Morrison looks to defend his title in the junior men's pole vault.
*After taking third in the 100 meters at the 2005 USA Junior Champs, University of Texas freshman Alexandria Anderson is going for gold in the junior women's 100 meters.
*2005 IAAF World Youth 400 meter hurdles champion Ebony Collins will race for the crown in the junior women's 400m hurdles.
*2005 IAAF World Youth 100m champion and 200m runner-up Bianca Knight is looking for the double in the junior women's 100 and 200 meters.
*2006 NCAA 800 meter champion Rebekah Noble, a freshman at the University of Oregon, will defend her title in the junior women's 800m.
*Mission Prep High School freshman phenom Jordan Hasay will take on the field in the junior women's 3,000 meters. A two-time USA Junior Olympic champion in the 1,500m and 3,000m, Hasay owns the American youth record in both of those events.

For more information on the 2006 Finish Line USA Junior Track & Field Championships, visit USATF.org

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