The East Coast North Island Athletic champs, which took place at the Regional Sports Park near Hastings last night, attracted record entries of over 500 athletes.
"I have been involved in this event for 23 years and last night was the most entries I can recall," said Chair of Hastings Athletics, Allan Potts. "We had close to a thousand people including spectators, and cars were banked up for several hundred metres outside the main entry," he said.
Meanwhile a Land Protection Society is attempting to have the $2 million track ripped up and placed elsewhere.
"Events like last night, and we have many of them during the season, demonstrate just how successful and popular the new track is. They also demonstrate the stupidity of attempts to have it bulldozed," he says.
