Sacramento State is installing a new state of the art track just in time for the USA Track and Field Championships, June 26-29. Construction begins April 28 and will be ready for use in late May.

The new surface will be designed by Mondo, who has designed tracks for the 2012 and 2008 Summer Olympics, and will feature their new surface Super X 720.

“This surface is the first of its kind in the world,” said head coach Kathleen Raske. “It’s a hybrid between Super X and Mondotrack.”

While the top layer is Super X, which is rubber-based and designed for elasticity and spike resistance. The bottom layer is composed of mondotrack, which creates more rebound and increases speed.

When put together, the new surface provides a much-needed replacement for the current 15-year-old track.

“Our goal was to upgrade and create one of the most desirable and high-performing tracks around,” Raske said. “Mondo makes the number one surface in the world.”

The new addition to the track facilities has drawn a lot of attention to the track program. USA Track and Field has agreed to bring their Championships to Hornet Stadium because of their high-quality surface.

“The USA Track and Field Championships is coming here because of the new track,” said junior sprinter Bryan Cuellar. “It’ll be cool for all the professional athletes to come see Sac State as a top-notch facility.”

Professionals will not be the only ones coming to marvel at Sac State’s new gem. With the new upgrades, it’ll be much easier for the coaching staff to reach out to athletes across the region.

“Whenever you get a world-class track surface, you’re going to attract world-class athletes,” Raske said. “It always enhances our recruiting efforts when you have one of the greatest tracks in the world.”

Aside from the world-renown surface, the new track has a signature characteristic – its green and gold color scheme.

“Just knowing that we’re going to have a new color for the track will bring out Hornet pride,” said freshman hurdler Trever Sitch. “Not many tracks have a green and gold color design.”

The track will feature a green oval design and gold runways for field events like the long jump and the triple jump.

The total cost for the track resurfacing topped out at $1.4 million, courtesy of the City of Sacramento as an investment into the Track and Field program. No money will be contributed by the Athletic Department.

“We saw resurfacing the track as an opportunity to land bigger meets,” said Mike Testa, vice president of communications and public affairs for the Sacramento Sports Commission. “We expect this new track to bring more events, and increase our $2.4 billion in visitor spending figure.”

Along with financial benefits, the new track will provide the athletes with some much-needed relief.

“Personally, I think having a new track will be easier on our legs,” Sitch said. “The old track had it’s time. It’ll be nice for my shins to rest.”

Construction on the practice track has already began, and will be completed ahead of the competition track. The athletes will be able to practice on the new Mondo surface as soon as the middle of May.

“Training on such a good track every day will be a big plus,” Cuellar said. “It’s one thing to compete on a good track, but training on it every day will be beneficial for us in the long run.”