Historic KU Relays, a century-old track tradition, will not run in 2026

Cost-cutting measures at KU put one of the Midwest’s most storied track and field meets on hold, leaving its future uncertain

The 2026 KU Relays will not take place, according to Kansas officials. / Jesse Bruner/Special to the Capital-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Since 1923, high school athletes, college, and other future star track and field athletes from across the country have gathered in Lawrence, Kansas, to go toe-to-toe with some of the best competition in the country.

One of the most famous meets in the country, the KU Relays are often what many student-athletes, coaches and fans look forward to every year. It’s one of the biggest tests teams will face against some of the best competitors the country has to offer.

Due to cost-cutting measures at Kansas, it appears the entirety of the Relays’ future could also become history.

Kansas athletic director Travis Goff confirmed to the Lawrence Journal-World that the Relays are being cut from next year’s schedule as part of department-wide expense reductions. Goff explained that the decision is "tied most directly to expense management," emphasizing the need for the department to "get our legs underneath us in this new chapter" following the implementation of the House v. NCAA settlement, which allows universities to directly pay student-athletes.

He noted that the move is part of broader efforts to manage the increased financial obligations resulting from the settlement.

Due to cost-cutting measures, the famous KU Relays will not run in the spring of 2026. / Liam Keating/The Capital-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Kansas Relays began in 1923, created by Dr. John H. Outland and supported by KU athletic director Phog Allen and track coach Karl Schlademan. Modeled after the Penn Relays, the event drew more than 600 athletes to its first running and has since grown into a fixture of the Midwest track calendar.

For most of its history, the meet was staged at Memorial Stadium in Lawrence before moving to Rock Chalk Park in 2014, where it has been held in recent years. Rock Chalk Park features a nine-lane, World Athletics-certified track built to host top-level competition.

The Relays have included multiple levels of competition, with high school, college, and open divisions. In 2005, organizers introduced the Gold Zone to spotlight marquee events, which drew Olympians and elite athletes alongside local competitors.

Despite its longevity, the Relays have not been uninterrupted. The meet was suspended from 1943 to 1945 during World War II, canceled in 1998 and 1999 while Memorial Stadium underwent renovations, and paused again from 2020 through 2022 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It returned in 2023 to mark its 100th anniversary and continued this past spring with its 102nd running.

With KU’s decision to halt the 2026 edition, the future of the Relays is once again in question. For now, one of track and field’s longest-running meets – which has connected Olympians, collegiate stars, and high school athletes for more than a century – faces an uncertain path forward

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