Simplot Games start Thursday in Pocatello
More than 2,200 athletes will participate in the 41st annual Simplot Games when they get underway Thursday in Pocatello.
The Games are credited as the nation’s premier high school indoor track and field event. They attract competitors from across the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
The J.R. Simplot Company has sponsored the competition since 1979 at Idaho State University’s Holt Arena.
Some of Idaho’s star athletes will be among the competitors, including:
Ty Wright, a senior from Shelley, will return to compete in the boys’ high jump after placing first at the 2018 Simplot Games. So far, this high school indoor season, Wright has placed first in the high jump at the BYU High School Indoor Invitational and second at the Nike Boise Indoor. Wright was the 2018 IHSAA 3A State Champion, marking his third state title. He was also the 3A District 6 Champion last season. He placed first in the high jump at the USATF Snake River Association Junior Olympic Championships and the USATF Region 11 Junior Olympic Championships in 2018 as well. Madilyn Zink, a junior from Pocatello, will compete in the 60-meter hurdles, 60 meters, long jump and 4×200 relay at Simplot Games. She competed at Simplot Games last year and placed 15thin the 60-meter hurdles as a sophomore. Zink placed first in the 60-meter hurdles and fifth in the long jump at the BYU High School Indoor Invitational this year. She also placed second in the 100-meter hurdles at the IHSAA 4A State Championships. In 2017, Zink took first in the 100-meter hurdles at the USATF Snake River Association Junior Olympic Championships and the USATF Region 11 Junior Olympic Championships. Lexy Halladay, a junior from Boise, competes in the girls 1600 meters. So far this season, Halladay has placed first in the mile at the Nike Boise Indoor and the Team Idaho Intersquad track and field meets. In 2018, she placed second at the IHSAA 5A State Championships in the 1600-meter run and placed first at the 5A District 3 Championships. She will return to Simplot Games this year to compete in the girls 1600 meters. Nathan Green, a sophomore from Boise, will return this year to compete in the boys 1600 meters after finishing 12thin the same event at last year’s Simplot Games. This season, Green competed in the Nike Boise Indoor and the Team Idaho Intersquad, placing first at both meets. In the 2018 track and field season, Green was the 5A District 3 Champion and the IHSAA 5A State Champion. He placed first at the Boise City Championships, the YMCA Invite, the Boise Relays, and the Borah-Rocky Mountain Dual track and field meets.
The games will officially open with a ribbon cutting shortly after 4 p.m. Thursday. They will continue through Saturday.
You can find specific information here.
