The 2026 MEAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships open Thursday in Norfolk, where William Dick Price Stadium will host three days of conference racing, jumping, and throwing from May 14 through May 16.
The field includes the MEAC’s eight member schools, Coppin State, Delaware State, Howard, Maryland Eastern Shore, Morgan State, Norfolk State, North Carolina Central, and South Carolina State, with team titles and championship momentum on the line.
Howard’s women and Norfolk State’s men arrive with the most attention.
Howard is going for a fifth straight women’s outdoor title, while Norfolk State is trying to extend its men’s championship streak to five in a row. Both runs started in 2022, which gives this meet extra weight before the first event even begins.
Norfolk gets the first swing at the title race
The championship begins Thursday with the men’s decathlon at 1 p.m. and the women’s heptathlon at 1:15 p.m.
The first medals will come from events such as the discus, high jump, and 10,000 meters, and Friday will add a full slate of preliminaries along with finals in the long jump, shot put, hammer throw, and 3,000 meter steeplechase.
That kind of schedule can reshape the team standings quickly, especially in a meet where every place matters.
You can also purchase tickets starting at $15 a day and $40 for full championship, meaning you can attend all three days.
Saturday brings the final push, and ESPN Plus will carry the championship session live starting at 1 p.m.
The broadcast opens with the women’s and men’s 4×100 meter relay finals and closes with the men’s 4×400 meter relay finals at 4:15 p.m.
Trophy presentations and Outstanding Performer awards follow after the final races, ending the weekend in the same stadium where it started.
What makes the meet worth watching is the mix of pressure and familiarity.
Norfolk State gets the home setting, Howard and Norfolk State bring the strongest title streaks, and the rest of the conference gets a chance to break that rhythm over three days.
For the MEAC, that is the appeal of the championship meet. It is a chance to see which school can hold up across every session, not just which one flashes the fastest time in one race.
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