Clark Atlanta University's Panther Stadium will be bustling all day Saturday, but not because of football.

For the first time in nearly two decades, the venue will be hosting a track meet when the CAU Lady Panthers Track and Field team hosts the first Panther Invitational beginning at 10 a.m.   Admission to the meet is free of charge.

"I am scared, happy, just anticipating pulling everything off," said CAU Track and Field Head Coach Pamela Page. "I think that everything is starting to pull together now and I'm starting to see it come together."

Nearly 200 athletes from nine men's and women's teams will be competing in track and field events on the CAU's brand new track which was just installed this past summer.

The track replaced a historic surface that had surrounded the football field at Panther Stadium beginning in 1996.  That track had been the one that hosted the world's athletes during the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympic Games at what was then Centennial Olympic Stadium (formerly Turner Field and now Georgia State Stadium).

It was where sprinter Michael Johnson blazed to an Olympic-record winning time in the 400 meters and a world record in the 200 meters. That historic track was eventually moved to Clark Atlanta's Panther Stadium after the Olympic Games ended.

But over the years, the track began to show its wear and tear.

"Many of our facilities were top-notch when they were erected," said CAU Athletic Director Dr. J Lin Dawson.  "However, the years of practice, competition and Mother Time have eroded some of our facilities.

Now, a new track – one that elite, Olympic athletes could actually compete on – has been erected at the stadium.  The International Association of Athletic Federations (IAAF)-certified track features a Decutan G-13 surface, with eight lanes.  The track facility also includes two long jump pits, along with competitive spaces for some field events.

"It will put us at the top of the heap in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference," Dawson said. "With that thought in mind, we wil be going after many regional and national events, such as the Junior Olympics, senior events. We'll be looking to host conference championships, AAU meets and other events." 

Saturday's meet is the first one on the new track.

"We have nine teams coming and they are all Division II schools," Page said. "Some from around the area, such as Morehouse, Shorter, Fort Valley State, a lot of Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference schools are coming so we'll get to see what our competition is like."

It's the second meet of the year for the Lady Panthers who opened the 2020 campaign in the Columbus State Cougar Invitational.  

"They are excited," Page said of her team. "Everybody is trying to practice even more now. But we should be competitive. It's a young team, but we should be competitive in some areas."

Another thing that will make Saturday special is it is Senior Day for CAU Track and Field seniors Tytianna Lockhart, Shariah Anderson, and Ariane Stubbs.   They will be honored during a ceremony that begins at 11:45 a.m.

The meet begins Saturday with field events that start at 10 a.m.  Track begin at noon with the Steeplechase.  The final event is slated for 5:45 p.m.   For the full schedule, go to clarkatlantasports.com and go to the women's track and field schedule section.