When Mt. San Antonio College first opened its stadium in October 1948, the facility was dedicated by a local first-term U.S. Congressman named Richard M. Nixon.
The welcoming committee will be significantly more prestigious when Hilmer Lodge Stadium formally reopens its doors Sunday after a four-year, $87 million overhaul.
With the USATF Golden Games (NBC 1:30-3 p.m.) the renovated stadium will be christened by a field that lives up to the meet’s name and the venue’s storied past. The athletes in Sunday’s lineup have won a combined 15 Olympic gold medals, 21 Olympic medals, 80 World outdoor or indoor medals, 38 of them gold.
While the meet might have lost its most anticipated showdown when world champion Donavan Brazier scratched from his 800-meter duel with Bryce Hoppel, another gold-medal contender, Sunday still has plenty of compelling storylines, not the least of which is the return of world-class track and field to a site that has played such a leading role in the sport’s history.
“Donavan has a sore foot, nothing serious, just a precaution,” a spokesperson for Brazier said in an email Saturday.
World champion Noah Lyles will run his first outdoor 200 of a season that is expected to solidify the American’s position as the heir apparent to Jamaica’s Usain Bolt as the face of the sport.
World record holder Keni Harrison and Sydney McLaughlin, the worlds runner-up in the 400 hurdles, headline a 100-hurdle field that has combined for seven Olympic and world outdoor or indoor medals.
Allyson Felix, the six-time Olympic champion who competed at L.A. Baptist High in North Hills, is featured in the 200, where she will make what is likely one her final appearances at a major competition in Southern California.
Sunday also marks the return of Olympic pole vault champion Katerina Stefanidi of Greece after a foot injury sidelined her in 2020 and left her questioning her future in the sport.
“There was a point in time where I thought maybe I would not be able to compete again or compete at a high level,” she said.
The injury remains something of a mystery to Stefanidi and her team, but seemed to disappear last fall.
“In November, I suddenly woke up (the day) after a jumping session expecting to be sore and I wasn’t,” she said.
The meet also includes the sideshow of Seattle Seahawks Pro Bowl wide receiver D.K. Metcalf competing in the 100. Much of the pre-meet media attention has focused on Metcalf’s appearance. Veteran sprinter Michael Rodgers this week seemed annoyed and amused by what is viewed as nothing more than a publicity stunt by many in a sport that has long been skeptical about NFL and college 40-yard dash times.
“I’ve been waiting for this day, I know a lot of people will agree with me, we’ve been waiting for this day for a football player to come line up and see what world-class speed is,” said Rodgers, a member of Team USA’s gold medal-winning 4×100 relay at the 2019 World Championships in Doha.
“He better be ready to see what world-class speed is and football players don’t have a clue. I know they talk all this trash on Twitter, but shout out to D.K. for even coming out and experiencing it. This is May, the time when sprinters really get going.
“I’m anxious to see his so-called ESPN world-class speed against real world-class speed.”
Rodgers has done his scouting report on the Seattle receiver, watching Metcalf’s 40-yard dash at the 2019 NFL draft combine.
“I’m anxious to see what this guy does after 40,” Rodgers said. “Because (at the combine) it looked like he was tapping out at (40).”
To get to Sunday’s 100 final, Metcalf will first have to survive a qualifying heat earlier in the day.
“Everybody’s hyping up D.K., he’s going to do this,” Rodgers said. “You’ve got to get through the rounds, buddy.
“This ain’t no all-comers meet. This is an elite track meet and I hope the football-aholics understand this is our job, what we do every day. So I hope he comes to play.”
Rodgers was asked for a prediction on Metcalf’s time Sunday.
“10.3 is the over-under to be honest,” he said.
Bolt’s world record is 9.58.
Source: Orange County Register
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