The Duke track and field teams will get their only chance to compete at home this weekend in the 2002 Duke Invitational. The meet is consistently one of the three largest track events on the East Coast, along with the Penn Relays and the Raleigh Relays, attracting nearly 120 teams and 2,000 athletes.
"A lot of people forget how big [the meet] really is just because it's in Wallace Wade," junior Jeremy Block said.
The event is not exclusively an NCAA event, as top club teams and individuals can also enter the race. In the past, the meet has featured athletic superstars and names as big as Marion Jones.
The Duke team looks to gain some recognition from its own university by competing in a prestigious event on its home track.
"The rest of the country knows we're here, but nobody here does," Block said.
The men hope to make some waves in the middle-distance and long-distance events.
"We have a lot of good cross-country-type runners, so we tend to load up our guys into the five-kilometer race, 3,000 steeplechase and the 1,500," Block said.
Two years ago, Brendan Fitzgibbon won the 1,500-meter race and this year, his Blue Devil teammates Bill Spierdowis, Nick Schneider, Brendan Wells, Jim Martin and Block make up the core of the distance runners.
The Duke women also hope to maximize their performance in the longer events with high hopes for Megan Sullivan in the 1,500.
Freshman Meghan Leon said she feels the chance to run in Durham should be an advantage.
"We've been practicing on [this] track all year," Leon said. "I think it will help."
The top individual female athletes at this year's event include former NCAA triple-jump champion Trecia Smith, three-time All-America and former Duke student Julian Sullivan, and defending NCAA mile champion Heather Sagan of Liberty.
North Carolina's distance medley relay team which set an indoor national record at the 2002 NCAA Indoor Championships will also compete.
The top individuals on the men's side include world record holder (4x400-meter relay) and former world champion (200-meter dash) Antonio Pettigrew in the men's 200-meter dash.
The competition begins at 2 p.m. today with the women's hammer.
"Year in and year out, it's a great meet," Block said.
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