STOCKTON, Calif., Oct. 22, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- When students returned to classes at San Joaquin Delta College this fall, one of the new sights greeting them was a renovated athletic stadium. And one of the major changes to the venue was the installation of the new track: Mondotrack, the same track surface that was used at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.
Delta College's Lawrence A. DeRicco Stadium now features a nine-lane, 400-meter Mondotrack and Mondo runways for pole vault, and high-, long- and triple jumps. An additional athletic facility across the street from DeRicco Stadium includes a Mondo surface for javelin. The renovations were completed the last week of September, and Delta College is planning a ceremony during homecoming weekend in late October to dedicate the renovated stadium.
"We conducted a lot of research prior to the installation and found Mondo to be the premier track surface available," said Gary Scott, Delta College's former athletic director and current strategic planning consultant. Scott was instrumental in the research, budget and installation phases of the project. "The college and community are very excited and it has been a very significant event here."
"We expect that this new track will enable us to host more league events and possibly statewide high school or collegiate meets," Scott said.
In the past seven years, Delta College track and field student-athletes have won 10 California Community College State Championships and 14 NorCal Championships. Now the teams will benefit from practicing and competing on the world's best track surface.
"The innovative design of Mondo tracks consistently helps athletes perform their best," said Federico Stroppiana, president of Mondo North and South America. "By choosing Mondo as its new track surface, Delta College will not only have the premier track and field facility among California community colleges, but one of the best anywhere in the state."
Mondotrack is known for its durability, and it has a substantially lower lifecycle cost than other types of tracks. "Those factors, combined with Mondo's reputation for outstanding service, helped convince Delta College administrators that a Mondo track would offer the lowest cost of ownership and provide the best performance for students and the community," Stroppiana said. "With budget constraints at Delta College, it speaks volumes that their leaders chose to invest in the highest quality athletic track in the world."
Mondotrack builds upon the success of Mondo's world-renowned Super X Performance track, which has been the world's top track for more than 30 years and was the track of the eight Olympic Games prior to Beijing in 2008. The new track was designed to provide optimal traction and a greater contact area than other tracks. It converts the maximum amount of force generated by athletes' foot strikes to energy for maximum energy return, which helps athletes achieve faster times compared to running on other surfaces. Mondotrack also provides excellent athletic comfort and maximum safety. More than 230 world records have been set on Mondo tracks, including five at the 2008 Olympic Games.
About Mondo
Mondo is the global leader in the sports flooring market, manufacturing floor surfaces for virtually every sport. The official supplier of the athletic track for the past nine Olympic Games, Mondo also is the official supplier or official sponsor of more than 100 sports federations and associations, including FIBA, IAAF, Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association, NIRSA, U.S. Track Coaches Association and YMCA.
The company also supplies a wide variety of commercial flooring and is the world's largest producer of sports and toy balls with an average daily production of 450,000 units. In addition, it manufactures large luxury yachts under its Mondo Marine division.
Mondo invests heavily in research and development to ensure its products meet the highest quality standards in the industry, deliver optimal athletic performance, are durable, require minimal maintenance and are environmentally safe.
A family-owned business since its founding in 1948, Mondo's global headquarters are in Italy. The company has manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe and Asia and sells its products in more than 196 countries. More information about Mondo is available at www.mondousa.com.
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Mondo is a registered trademark of Mondo