Last Saturday, the 50th Prefontaine Classic was held at Hayward Field. With the great field of athletes competing, I decided I’d like to attend. Having been inside the stadium for world class meets, I was sure tickets would still be available.

So, off I went, planning to buy a ticket at the ticket office. I found the box office, but there was a sign on the window that said the meet was sold out. I was shocked. With a stadium that large, surely there would be seats available. I asked at the ticket office, if there wasn’t just one ticket? No, the event was sold out.

Once home, since part of the meet was being televised, I would at least get to see some of the events. While watching, I noticed empty seats scattered about the stadium. How disappointing! I understand people buy tickets and don’t always attend. In looking into it further, I found that specific organizations or individuals receive complimentary tickets through partnerships or promotions.

I’m suggesting that the University of Oregon plan to keep a small number of tickets for day-of event sales. Apparently, some tickets were released Saturday and were gone within 90 minutes.

I had looked on the Duck ticket website Friday night and Saturday morning, and there were no tickets available. It doesn’t appear there is any room for spontaneity if someone (like myself!) wants to attend a meet at Hayward Field.

I also looked at the prices of tickets for the big meets. For the Prefontaine Classic, tickets ranged from $25 to $1,000. For the upcoming USATF Outdoor & Para National Championships, general admission tickets are $45; seats in the section on the finish line are $477.

If a family of four wanted to bring their children to this meet, it would cost $180 for general admission tickets for just one day of competition at this four-day meet.

Having competed at Hayward Field in the ’70s, it makes me sad that the new stadium seems to have also brought a big increase in ticket prices.

Mary Lou Bradley
Eugene