INSTITUTE, W.Va. – The West Virginia State University athletic department is pleased to announce the launch of men's and women's track & field programs, as well as men's and women's cross country programs, at the start of the 2023-24 academic year. 

"We are very excited to announce the addition of both track & field and cross country at WVSU, increasing our sport offerings to 17 sports." said WVSU Athletic Director Nate Burton. "A national search for a head coach will commence immediately and we look forward to welcoming student-athletes for these sports this Fall."

All six programs will hit the ground running as full members of NCAA Division II and the Mountain East Conference (MEC) beginning in the 2023-24 season. The cross country teams will compete for championships in the fall. Championships for indoor track & field are held in the winter, while outdoor track & field will compete for championships in the spring.

The men's track & field program will be reinstated after winning 11 conference championships in the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC). The Yellow Jackets brought home five consecutive WVIAC Championships from 1969-1973 and won five straight again from 1981-1985. They claimed their first-ever conference championship in 1959.

Both male and female track & field athletes will compete in short-distance running events including the 100-meter dash, 100/110-meter hurdles, 200-meter dash, 400-meter dash and 400-meter hurdles. They will also compete in long-distance running events including lengths of 800, 1,500, 5,000 and 10,000 meters as well as in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. The 4x100 and 4x400-meter relays are also run at the collegiate level. 

Field events featured at the collegiate level include discus throw, hammer throw, high jump, javelin throw, long jump, pole vault, shot put, and triple jump. Additionally, women compete in the heptathlon while men compete in the decathlon. A heptathlon combines seven different track & field events while a decathlon combines ten different events.

Women's cross country also makes a return to West Virginia State's slate of varsity sport offerings after a brief respite. Collegiate cross country forgoes laps around a track for marked trails through wilderness. Men typically compete on eight kilometer or 10 kilometer courses while women's courses typically measure either five or six kilometers. Natural obstacles and changes in elevation create challenges not seen on the track for distance runners to overcome.