Wolverines to Hold Joi Smith Intrasquad, Kids Clinic on Friday
12/1/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track & Field
Dec. 1, 2011
• Schedule of Events 
| Kids Clinic Flyer
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan women's track and field team will hold the inaugural Michigan Joi Smith Intrasquad meet at 6 p.m. Friday (Dec. 2) at the U-M Indoor Track Building. The event is named in honor of former Wolverine Joi Smith, who lost a battle with cancer on Nov. 17, 2007.
The team is requesting that one canned good item per person be donated in place of an admission fee for the intrasquad and the Kids Clinic. All items will be donated to a local homeless shelter and the Salvation Army.
Prior to the meet, children between the ages of four and 12 are invited to participate in a Kids Clinic from 5-6 p.m. All participants will receive instruction from Michigan coaches and student-athletes and receive a free giveaway.
"This meet has been designed to gauge the progress of the team leading into our competitive season," said head coach James Henry. "It will be a night filled with fun, yet intense competition where the athletes are split into two teams, Maize and Blue. The competition consists of both track and field events where student-athletes have the opportunity to compete in different event specialties.
"This meet is held in honor of Joi Smith in order to promote teamwork, school spirit and competition. As this meet becomes a new tradition, we expect that they will compete with pride and integrity, setting the pace for the Michigan women's track and field team throughout the season."
Smith joined the track team as a freshman in 2006, specializing in hurdles, jumps and sprints, and she ran the 60-meter hurdles at the 2006 Big Ten Indoor Championships. Competing in her first pentathlon as a sophomore, Smith placed third at the Simmons/Harvey Invitational (Jan. 19-20, 2007).
Prior to the 2007 Big Ten Indoor Championships, Smith was diagnosed with a rare form of muscle cancer called alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma. Due to her illness, Smith was forced to forego track, but she continued to focus on her schoolwork and enrolled in two courses during that spring term while undergoing treatment.
Coach Henry and select members of the team shared their comments on holding the event in Joi's honor. Sophomores Amber Smith and Erin Busbee were high school teammates with Joi at Collinwood in Cleveland, Ohio.
U-M Head Coach James Henry
"Joi was like a daughter to me. She was determined, strong and a leader on our team. Not a day passed by where Joi was not smiling. She had such a big heart and made an impact greater than anyone could imagine to all of those around her. Joi always fought hard on and off the track; even through her illness, she remained a fighting force. Her spirit and her determination are a legacy that will remain with our team. To this day I remember her smile."
U-M Sophomore Amber Smith (Recipient of the 2011 Joi Smith Award)
"Joi was a beautiful person inside and out. She had a glow when she entered a room. When she came home from college, she would teach me hurdle drills even though I was just an eighth grader. She was determined and strong."
U-M Fifth-Year Senior Allison Liske
"I never knew Joi, but those who knew her put everything they had on the line for her when they competed. She had such a big impact on those around her that her legacy will live on with the women's track and field team and far beyond our lifetime."
U-M Sophomore Erin Busbee
"Joi was an amazing leader and an ambitious athlete. Every time I saw her, she was working hard, and if she was off the track she was smiling. She was a beautiful person and an amazing athlete."
Contact: Whitney Dixon (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
