Roger Harring Stadium at Veterans Memorial Field Sports Complex
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UW-La Crosse will host the 2013 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III Men's and Women's Outdoor Track & Field Championships May 23-25, 2013. The championships will take place at Roger Harring Stadium at Veterans Memorial Field Sports Complex.
It marks the third time (1986, 1997, 2013) UW-L has hosted the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships. The 2013 championships will feature nearly 800 competitors. The three-day meet is the largest single site for number of competitors in any of the championships hosted by the NCAA Division III.
Construction on the $16.6 million Veterans Memorial Field Sports Complex began in June 2008 after the completion of the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) State Track Meet, which has been held at UW-L since 1990. The 2013 WIAA State Track Meet is scheduled for May 31-June 1.
UW-L hosted its first event at the new facility May 14, 2009 with an NCAA Division III Track & Field Qualifying Meet.
The stadium is known as Roger Harring Stadium to recognize the accomplishments of the former UW-L football coach. Harring, who was named to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2005, won three national championships and 15 conference titles at UW-L.
The sports complex was funded in large measure by private dollars and is a partnership between UW-L (faculty & staff, students and alums), local schools and the community. The stadium has approximately 6,250 seats, plus expanded locker rooms, restrooms, concessions and training facilities.
In addition to a football field and running track, the entire Veterans' Memorial Field Sports Complex is lighted and features a soccer field, recreation and intramural fields, a football practice field and other amenities.
An enhanced Veterans' Hall of Honor in the stadium celebrates, in a very public way, the contributions of America's veterans.
Originally owned by the city of La Crosse and named Fairground Football Field, the stadium was dedicated and renamed in honor of veterans from all wars in 1948. After the university bought the facility from the City of La Crosse for $1 in 1987, a major renovation was financed by the State Building Commission to improve the structure and exterior appearance of the stadium. The new facility was dedicated at a special program Sept. 12, 2009.
