Meet of Champions Distance Classic

Coaches Tim O'Rourke & Irv Ray

The Meet of Champions actually has a lineage that dates back more than a half century.

 

The original idea for a "Distance Carnival" was conceived by legendary Baldwin Park coach, Dave Casper, in the 1960s.

 

In the 1970s, Alex Bravo took it over and brought it to Hawthorne High School, where he ran it until 1990.

 

Tim O'Rourke, who at the time was the coach at Arroyo High School, and Irv Ray, coach at Azusa Pacific University, then picked up the baton and brought the meet to the San Gabriel Valley and Azusa Pacific University, where it has grown into one of the premier track meets in the nation.