Greater Boston Track Club, Inc.

The Greater Boston Track Club provides a friendly, competitive, team-oriented environment to those who compete at the national, regional, and local levels. The club promotes events in track and field, road racing, trail running, and cross-country. The original founders of the Greater Boston Track Club (GBTC) intended the club to service post-collegiate athletes who want to further their athletic pursuits after they are no longer eligible for collegiate training and competition. The founders recognized that most track and field, cross-country, or road racing athletes have much room for improvement after college graduation. Many members are graduate students at Greater Boston area colleges and universities but cannot compete for the college team nor be supported or coached by them. Likewise, the GBTC provides a service to undergraduate students at high-performance, Division I colleges and universities who have been "cut" from their college athletic programs and have no alternatives for coaching or team membershinational, or international level, up to the Olympic level. No system other than athletic clubs such as GBTC supports athletes in these attempts. Along the way to the highest levels of sport, the GBTC's purpose is to urge members of the public to participate in healthful athletic competition at all levels, ages, and abilities and to work alone or with other organizations to organize events for healthful competition. GBTC provides places and camaraderie, teammates and coaching, conducive to effective training. In this way, the GBTC helps athletes from beginners to Olympic contenders who are not supported by school teams.In addition to the competitive goals, the social aspects of the club separate its function from resembling a fitness club or gym. The club brings like-minded people of all ages together and often provides important social support beyond work and family. GBTC has embraced members from many countries such as Germany, France, Mexico, Netherlands and Greece. GBTC's service has also expanded in two directions, older and younger. Track and Field athletes continue training and competing into their 30s, 40s in masters competition and on into later decades. The GBTC in offering services to high school, college, and graduate students, and athletes of all ages gives many young people their first real social interaction with adults other than family members, teachers, or bosses. It is a wonderful thing to see people of all ages and sexes work together based strictly on performance.