JOURNAL STAFF
Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Commissioner Dr. KiKi Baker Barnes recalled some of her fond memories from Lee Hedges Stadium after Thursday’s press conference announcing that the GCAC Outdoor Track and Field Championship will be held in Shreveport the next three years.
“The opportunity to come here and create the same kind of impact given to me means so much,” said Baker Barnes, who competed at Lee Hedges Stadium when she ran track and field for Minden High School (she won the state triple jump title as a senior and still holds the triple jump record at the University of New Orleans). “I live in New Orleans now, but I’m from the Ark-La-Tex.”
The 2023 GCAC Outdoor Track and Field Championship – hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission — will be held at Lee Hedges Stadium April 14-15.
“We are thrilled to host the 2023 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships, and we look forward to bringing the event back in 2024 and 2025,” said Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission Director of Sports Sara Nelms, who estimated the economic impact of the three-year commitment will bring $1 million to the area.
“Our community is ready to welcome athletes and visitors as we continue to make Shreveport-Bossier the preferred destination for sporting events across the south.”
The GCAC, celebrating its 40th year as a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), is one of only five conferences comprised of members representing Historically Black Colleges and Universities in the United States.
The GCAC membership includes Dillard University, Fisk University, Oakwood University, Philander Smith College, Rust College, Southern University at New Orleans, Tougaloo College, and Wiley College. The University of the Virgin Islands joins the conference July 1, 2023.
