One of the country’s signature scholastic sporting events will take place at the New Balance Track & Field Center at The Armory in Washington Heights this Friday through Sunday when the New Balance Nationals Indoor returns to New York after a two year interruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since 1999, the NBNI has provided a glimpse of future Olympians during their high school years in track & field. Over the upcoming three-day competition 68 championship events, 51 Rising Stars events and 14 events featuring freshman competitors will be staged.
Some of the top high school athletes scheduled to display their talents in running, throwing and jumping events include the sensational Shawnti Jackson. The 16-year-old from Raleigh, North Carolina, broke the all-time 60-meter high school national record at the Millrose Games held at The Armory this past January, clocking 7.18 to finish third in the women’s professional field. The time established a new age group world record and national junior class mark.
Jackson’s coach is her father and track great Bershawn “Batman” Jackson, a gold medalist in the 400-meter hurdles at the 2005 World Championships and bronze medal winner in the event at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. She will run in both the 60-meter and 200-meters at the NBNI.
Colin Sahlman, only the fourth prep runner to go under four minutes indoors in the mile, achieved earlier this year, will take on his peers in the 800-meters as well as compete with his Newbury Park Athletic Club (Newbury Park, California) in the 4 x 1 mile relay. They will seek to become the first high schoolers to run under 17 minutes.
Lumberton, New Jersey’s Greg Foster of the Lawrenceville School, the No. 1 ranked scholastic long jumper in the nation, will look to earn the title in his specialty. Foster is no stranger to The Armory having competed there in previous meets. In addition to the long jump, he ranks in the top 10 nationally in the triple jump and sprint hurdles.
Stanford University commit Roisin Willis of Stevens Point, Wisconsin, the national record holder in the girls 800-meters (2:00.06 clocking), and class of 2022 standout Tarik Robinson-O’Hagan of Woonsocket, Rhode Island, who will be heading to the University of Mississippi for his college years, will bring their immense talents to New York as two of the NBNI headliners.