LIHUE — Hawaii’s high school athletic directors voted to add a 4×800 meter relay event to the Hawaii High School Athletic Association Track and Field Championships.
The decision was made last week during the 62nd annual Hawaii Interscholastic Athletic Directors Association Conference — passing narrowly by a 48-46 vote.
More than seven years ago, the Big Island Interscholastic Federation and Interscholastic League of Honolulu pushed to add the event — but it did not receive enough votes.
This year’s vote was backed by unanimous support by the BIIF’s athletic directors — including AD of Kamehameha Schools – Hawai‘i and BIIF Track Coordinator Kimo Weaver, who helped lead the push.
“As a league we try to vote together,” Weaver said. “Any proposal from our league is discussed, voted on and approved by our league.”
ScoringLive reported that both the Maui Interscholastic League and Oahu Interscholastic Association voted in opposition to adding the 4×800.
“It’s a very common pushback,” Weaver said. “(The MIL and OIA) had the rationale of fairness. Whether you’re a larger school or a smaller school, sometimes adding events can change scoring. The perception is that the larger schools might do better.”
Hawaii became the newest of 42 states that run the 4×800.
California also recently introduced the event to its competitions, debuting the 4×800 this Spring.
Weaver and other supporters hope that the addition of the 4×800 meter relay will help diversify Hawaii’s track events and help the state’s athletes compete on a national level.
“Currently our state offers 16 events,” he said, “which is kind of on the lighter side. Personally, I think we should be around 18 to 20 events — but I don’t know how many field events we could add because of venue limitations.
“The (4×800) fits well because it gets our distance runners more opportunities to participate.”
The 4×800 will come into action during the 2023-24 track and field season.