Richard Gwin/Journal-World Photo
Photo Gallery: 2005 Kansas Relays -- Thursday
Events
It’s a track meet, but it’s being described in terms that would make boxing promoter Don King proud.
The director of the Kansas Relays said Thursday that Olympic-champion sprinter Maurice Greene — previously scheduled only to compete in a relay — would also run in the 100-meter dash. The last-minute change is part of an overall effort to get more professional-caliber athletes involved in this year’s relays.
Meet director Tim Weaver said it would be “like a heavyweight fight” when Greene runs the 100 meters.
“You’ve got the champion and the contenders when the gun goes off, and it’s going on in our back yard,” he said.
The relays last through Saturday at Kansas University’s Memorial Stadium. Athletes scheduled to compete include Olympic champions and world-record setters Greene, Marion Jones and Stacy Dragila, plus Olympic champions Allen Johnson, Nick Hysong, Inger Miller and Savatheda Fynes.
The meet’s organizers say they’ve already enlisted more than 400 volunteers, many of whom want to catch an up-close glimpse of a track and field legend.
Assistant meet director Mark Schwarm said it appears there are enough volunteers lined up for Saturday, but he estimated he needed about 20 more to help today.
“We can’t guarantee that everyone’s going to have their first preference,” he said. “We will guarantee that they will help us out immensely.”
Anyone who’s interested in helping can call 864-0938.
Events start at 8 a.m. today, and the last event starts at 8:25 p.m. On Saturday, the start time is the same but the last event is schedules to start at 6:10 p.m.
A complete schedule is available online at www.kusports.com.
— Sports writer Steve Vockrodt contributed to this report.
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