The Event: 

• the Dordt University men's track and field team will send 11 athletes to compete in the 2026 NAIA Outdoor National Championship this week in Asheville, N.C.
• the 74th-annual championship is a three-day event, beginning Wednesday, May 20 and will conclude on Friday, May 22 with the awards ceremony at 7pm (EST).
• the championship will be held at the Karl Straus Track Complex in Asheville, N.C. for the first time in the history of the championship

Championship Format:

• all races on the track, except for the 10K and race-walk, have prelim and finals
• prelims are held on either Wednesday or Thursday for events on the track; finals are on Friday (exception: 4x800 final is on Thursday)
• field events have prelim and finals on the same day; top nine advance to finals (not high jump or pole vault)
• top eight finishers in the finals are All-American and earn points for their team on a 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 scale.
• the team with the most points after all 23 championship events (9 field, 11 track and 3 relays) are scored wins the team title.

A Look at the Championship, By the Numbers:

• 123 teams will send at least one athlete to compete at the championship
• 706 athletes will compete in an individual event
• 24 teams will send 10-or-more athletes to compete, including Dordt with 11
  • Indiana Tech has the most with 28, followed by Cumberlands (26) and Marian (25)
• 11 teams have 10-or-more entries
  • Marian leads the field with 22 entries, followed by both Cumberlands and Indiana Tech with 20
• Dordt has 11 athletes / 4 entries competing at the 2026 championships

At Last Year's Indoor Championship:

• Dordt finished in a tie for 62nd place in the overall team standings with two points
• Defender All-Americans (1 event):
  • 4x800 Relay (7th place) - Luke Swanson, Trace Obbink, Kaden Van Wyngarden, Sam May, Isaac Davelaar
• Kaden Van Wyngarden earned a spot in the finals of the 1500m and placed 12th overall
• both the 4x400 relay (11th) and 4x100 (10th) competed but did not qualify for the finals
• British Columbia won the team title with 74 points, followed by Madonna (Mich.) with 53

In the Rankings:

• the Defenders hold a top 10 ranking in four events
  • #5 - 10,000m
  • #6 - Steeplechase
  • #7 - 4x400 relay
  • #9 - 400m

Defenders Line-Up / Outlook:

• Landon Fransman - High Jump
  • Prelims / Finals - Wednesday at 6:30pm (EST)
  • seeded 9th of 25 entries - 2.06m
  • 1st time qualifier
  • 2 All-Americans and 6 total returners from 2025
    • Victory Dailey (Marian) and Gunner Kovach (Marian) - T4th
  • No.1 mark - Deandre Jones (Voorhees) 2.14m
• Willem Den Hartog  - Pole Vault
  • Prelims / Finals - Friday at 11am (EST)
  • ranked 13th of 21 entries (4:80m)
  • 1st time qualifier for outdoor championships
    • qualified for 2026 NAIA Indoor Championships (12th place)
  • 2 All-Americans and 9 total returners from 2025
    • Ridge Willard - Ind.Wesleyan (7th), Tucker Monaco - Carroll (4th)
  • No.1 mark: Keenan Morris - Rocky Mountain (5.20m)
• 4x400 Relay
  • Prelims: Thursday, 8:45pm (Eastern)
  • Finals: Friday, 6:20 (Eastern) 9 advance
  • ranked 7th of 25 teams (3:11)
  • Defenders qualified, did not place in top eight, last season (11th place)
  • placed ninth at the 2026 NAIA Indoor
  • Defending Champion: Cumberlands
  • fastest qualifying time: Cumberlands (3:07)
  • 5 All-Americans, 16 total teams return
    • Cumberlands (1st), Dillard (3rd), Doane (5th), Olivet Nazarene (7th), Life (8th)
• 4x800 Relay
  • Prelims: Wednesday, 6:50pm (Eastern)
  • Finals: Thursday, 6:30pm (Eastern)  - 9 advance
  • ranked 21st of 27 teams (7:39)
  • Defenders placed 7th, earned All-American honors, last year
  • finished 6th at the 2026 NAIA Indoor
  • fastest qualifying time: Spring Arbor (Mich.) - 7:30
  • Defending Champion: Milligan
  • 7 All-American, 19 total teams return
    • Milligan (1st), Oklahoma City (2nd), Cornerstone (3rd), Marian (4th), Indiana Wesleyan (5th), Spring Arbor (6th), Dordt (7th)