KAILUA-KONA — Kealakehe’s Waverider Stadium was the place to be on Saturday as their new, sky blue, all-weather synthetic track played host to the Hawaii County Department of Parks &Recreation’s annual Youth Track and Field Meet.
The all-day event drew a large turnout of kids ranging in ages 6 to 14 years to compete in variety of track events: 50-meter, 70M, 100M, 400M, 800M, 1200M, 1600M, 4x50M relay and 4x100M relay; along with numerous field events: discus, shot put, softball throw, high jump, running long and triple jumps, and standing long and triple jumps.
Hawaii County Recreation Division Administrator Lindsey Iyo said the county organizes two track and field meets per year in both Kona and Hilo, with the primary focus on elementary and intermediate school ages. The annual event — which has been a staple on the Big Island for over three decades — is free and open to all schools, sport clubs and any young individual interested in participating.
“It’s really exciting to have it here (at Kealakehe High School),” Iyo said. “In the past we’ve had it at Konawaena High School and that’s a great facility, but having it here, right in town, gets more of the exciting vibes. I want to say that we have more participation this year because it is right here in town.
“High school sports have their own thing going, so for our Parks and Rec division, we want to be able to inspire and provide quality and safe activities for kids to participate in for years to come.”
For Kealakehe High School Cross Country and Track &Field Head Coach Duke Hartfield, Saturday’s Hawaii County Youth Track and Field event marked the first time in the school’s near 30-year history of hosting a track meet.
“It’s super exciting!” Hartfield said. “I can’t wait to see everyone compete. Today is like a dry run for us. I’ll get to see what works and doesn’t work and if there is anything we need to fix. Today is a huge exposure for the high school and our track program. A lot of kids here today will be coming up to join our track program one day as they come to high school.”
Hartfield, who has been at the helm of the Kealakehe boys and girls track and field programs since 2008, said his passion to coach stems from his experience as a collegiate volleyball player and nearly 40 years as a volleyball coach.
Prior to COVID, Hartfield led the boys and girls to winning the BIIF Track &Field Championships but that momentum came to halt during the pandemic. Now with the newly-built all-weather synthetic track along with the exciting start of track season, Hartfield felt optimistic that more kids will be motivated to run and join the track program.
“I think today’s event is great for the public and I’m excited for as many people as possible to see this brand-new beautiful track,” Hartfield said. “Our opening track meet is on March 16 and that will be the first time in school history that we will be hosting our own track meet. So, I’m just excited! We are also hosting the BIIF (Track and Field) Championships this year and next year’s State Championships.”
For Sharif Webb, who has been the assistant sprints and jumps coach for Kealakehe’s Track and Field program since 2016, having the sky-blue all-weather track has been “a long time coming.”
Similar to Hartfield, his passion for coaching youth athletes to reach their maximum potential is deeply rooted in his own background as a collegiate football player for the University of Virginia and time spent training with the UVA track team, along with having two very athletic boys of his own.
“I played in college and kids really need that kind of elite training here in Kona as it’s heavily lacking,” Webb said. “So, kids really need someone who has experience to come and show them the way. I have my own kids involved too so I figured I might as well step in and do it. I coach all the sprints from the 100M, 200M and 400M, and the jumps — long, triple and high.”
At the end of the day, youth athletes who each competed in three different events left the field with sweaty, but happy smiles of accomplishment on their faces. Most are already gearing up for the next Hawaii County Youth Track and Field meet slated for February 17th at Kealakehe’s Waverider Stadium. There will also be two age-group track meets in Hilo — February 17 and March 2 — held at Waiakea High School’s Ken Yamase Stadium.
“I think it’s really important to participate in sports growing up — not just for the health benefits but for camaraderie and sportsmanship,” Iyo said. “We really try to encourage as many participants to come out as possible for all of our events. If it’s not free, then we try to keep it pretty reasonably priced. We want to keep providing activities for these kids. The way I see it, we are like the building blocks for what they might do in high school. So, we try to offer a variety of activities for kids to try out different things, see what sports they are interested in, and hopefully it will carry them through high school and beyond. Along the way, they can learn life skills and character building and just have fun!”