The 2026 NCAA Division I outdoor track and field championships return to Hayward Field in Eugene from Wednesday 10 June to Saturday 13 June. The men's and women's championships are contested simultaneously over the four days, and the meeting marks the 17th time the outdoor finals have been held in Oregon, cementing Eugene's status as the spiritual home of American collegiate athletics.
The road to Eugene has been a long one. Qualifying performances for the first rounds opened on 1 March, with selections announced on 21 May before the East and West preliminary rounds played out at Lexington and Fayetteville, concluding on 30 May. The final list of championship qualifiers was confirmed by the start of June, locking in the national fields across every event.
The format funnels the deepest collegiate talent in the country into a single venue: twelve athletes per event advance from each regional preliminary to contest the national title. Over four days the programme runs the full gamut from the distance events through the sprints, hurdles, relays and field disciplines, with coverage carried across the ESPN family of networks.
This season has already produced a string of fast collegiate marks, and several of the year's standout distance performers arrive in Eugene chasing both individual honours and the points that decide the men's and women's team titles. The combination of a fast track, a knowledgeable crowd and championship pressure has a long history of producing breakthrough performances at Hayward Field.
For many of the athletes on show, the championships represent the final major collegiate test before the professional and international seasons take over. With the US trials and the global calendar looming later in the summer, strong performances in Eugene can serve as a springboard, making this one of the most consequential weeks of the year for the next generation of American and international talent.