Rams' Clark to pole vault at New Balance National Outdoors meet

It's a big week and weekend for local area athletes.This week not only is Nike Nationals, and the USA Wrestling Women's National Duals, but so is another national competition: New Balance National Outdoors.Upper Sandusky is sending one of its own: Ashton Clark.The freshman qualified for NBNO during the regular season for pole vaulting, but hitting a personal record during the OHSAA Regional round cemented his place for the national stage. He will be competing on June today at 3:30 p.m.The qualifying standard for NBNO in pole vault is 12-0. Clark's PR was 13-6."Being a freshman and one of the best in our region," Rams coach Ed Arnold said, "jumping 13-6 is phenomenal."Over recent years, videos and photos from national competitions have been seen by youth in the area, and Upper Sandusky is no exception to the social media sharings on Instagram and Tik Tok.Arnold's niece is running at NBNO as well, and knows that it is the talk during track and field season. It's no wonder local athletes are starting to compete on the national stage. NBNO is similar to Nike Nationals. According to CITIUS Magazine, which covers some of the national track and field meets, it started in 1991 when the National Scholastic Athletics Foundation started hosting, and had sponsors and up until 2009, the most recognizable was Nike Nationals. From 2010-2019, New Balance and NSAF continued to partner together to bring the NBNO to Greensboro, North Carolina at the campus of A&T University. When the pandemic hit, the two organizations parted ways, and NB decided to start hosting their own. Add in the Brooks PR Invitational, and Adidas Outdoor Nationals, which are lesser known, and the high school track and field athletes have a lot to think about.For Ram Nation, it's quite an exciting time for more history to be made and for leaving a legacy behind. With Clark competing in the national spotlight, it's bringing a lot to the small town, and to bring some fans from Ram nation to Franklin Field, Philadelphia, PA, it's truly an honor. Franklin Field is home to the University of PA football team, hosts the oldest organized relay competition in the US, the International Penn relays every year, and is the oldest college stadium since it's inception in 1895."Clark is a very motivated, hard working young man," Arnold said. "All of us are proud of him, and the track community is excited for him to have this opportunity. He did a great job during the season, and this is just a cherry on top of his freshman season as a high school Ram."