More than $100k in prize money and travel support to be awarded; Co-ed Team Challenge champion set to be crowned

EUGENE, Ore. - The Oregon Relays presented by AthleticNET is extremely excited to announce the addition of six Pro Challenge events to the 2023 event schedule. With more than $100,000 in prize money and travel support, the Oregon Relays offers a chance for top pro athletes to challenge national and world records, under the lights in a thrilling, fan-friendly environment at Hayward Field, with a Co-ed Team Challenge champion celebrated at the end of the two-day showcase.

At the 2022 Oregon Relays, a 4xMile team headlined by Cole Hocker and Cooper Teare narrowly missed breaking the world record in the event, as thousands of fans cheered them on from lanes 5-9. This year on Friday, fans can watch some of the nation’s top distance squads battle in the women’s DMR and men’s 4xMile, with both races being run back to back with the nation’s best high school boy’s and girl’s DMR races.

Less than 24 hours later, the mixed 4x800m relay takes aim at the world best mark in the event, followed two hours later by men’s and women’s mile events, where fans will once again line the track and cheer on their favorite athletes, with a focus on getting as many men under the four-minute barrier and as many women under the 4:40 barrier, as possible.

"Since 2004, the Oregon Relays most coveted award for our High School competition has been the Co-ed Team Championship. Starting this year, we want to extend that same concept to our post-high school competition," says Oregon Relays founder and meet director Ross Krempley. "We plan to expand the individual events and mixed relay events offered in this Challenge in future years, but for 2023 we are kicking this off with a middle-distance focus."

The Brooks Beasts squad is the early big-name commitment to the Oregon Relays Pro Challenge fields. The Beasts will compete in the women’s DMR and mixed 4x800m relay. Additional committed top pro teams and athletes will be dropped on a rolling basis each week on the Oregon Relays social channels, so make sure to follow along as we unveil the featured challengers! 

Now that our early outreach is over, we are officially opening up registration for all Club and Pro athletes and teams beginning today on AthleticNET. Many of the event entries will be first come first served with lanes expected to fill up fast, interested athletes and teams should read the entry details found here.

Throughout all of the Pro Challenge events, a team battle will ensue with teams earning points based on finishes in each event. At the end of Saturday’s action, a Co-ed Team Challenge champion will be crowned, with $10,000 in prize money being awarded to the top team’s coach and athletes.

The prize money breakdown for each of the five races of the Pro Challenge line-up is $2500 for first place, $1000 for second place, and $500 for third, fourth, and fifth place. Additional prize money can be earned by breaking specific records and finishing top three in multiple events. There is even a $400 bonus for ALL Pro athletes that run Sub 4 in Men’s Mile or Sub 4:40 in Women’s Mile! A more detailed prize purse breakdown can be found here.

In addition to the extensive prize purse, teams can qualify for travel fundings, with $4,000 and $2,000 stipends being awarded. Interested pro and collegiate athletes and teams should contact Scott Bush at [email protected]. For more information, as well as how to qualify for travel funding visit the Pro Challenge information page.

Fans can now purchase tickets to watch all of the Pro Challenge events in-person at the University of Oregon Ticketmaster website or watch live only on RunnerSpace.

To keep up-to-date on the latest Oregon Relays news, schedule, and media updates, visit www.oregonrelays.com.

Note: edited on 3/24 to remove college, the challenges are now exclusively for Pros.

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Media Contact
Scott Bush
[email protected]