Blue River Sports Authority / Shelby County and Franklin College have been selected by the NCAA Division III Championship Committee as hosts for the 2021 NCAA Division III Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Great Lakes Regional.
The competition will take place Nov. 13, 2021 at the Blue River Cross Country Course in Shelbyville. The event is expected to be mutually beneficial for the Franklin and Shelbyville communities.
“Blue River is an outstanding venue for cross-country. Competitors and their fans, along with the NCAA were so impressed with the facility when we hosted this event in 2018, they decided to come back. As with the 2018 event, the NCAA Great Lakes Regional be a boon not only for Blue River, but also for the Shelbyville and Franklin communities. We are thrilled they will be back, and will show them hospitality unlike anything they receive anywhere else,” remarks Rachael Ackley, Blue River Sports Authority and SCTVB Executive Director.
The proposal was coordinated by Gary Nolley, Vice President of the Blue River Sports Authority, which promotes recreational and competitive sports in Shelby County. The bid was submitted to the NCAA in late 2019 and was accepted on February 27, 2020.
“The NCAA officials recognized that our course had everything needed for the collegiate teams, such as course width and straight-away lengths, and visibility for competitors and spectators throughout the entire course, which is not typical of most facilities,” stated Gary Nolley.
In addition to being a first-class facility, the course has 450 available rooms within 2 miles, and an additional 1200 within a 30-minute drive of Shelbyville, which was also a determining factor in the NCAA accepting the bid.
“We appreciate the investment of time Gary has given to maintain this state of the art facility. His passion has allowed both the Blue River Sports Authority and Shelby County Tourism and Visitors’ Bureau to expand our brand and mission reach, while giving competitors, spectators and official a taste of Shelby County hospitality.”
