Hamilton City Hawks History
- 1866 First recorded foot-racing takes place 18 months after the settlement of Hamilton.
- 1869 Hamilton Boxing Day Athletic sports take place on a field in Frankton. Later they transfer to Steele Park in Hamilton East.
- 1893 Prominent citizen C.J.W. Barton moves to turn Hamilton Boxing Day Sports into a club which is called Hamilton Athletic. It takes over the annual Boxing Day meeting, the undisputed sports and entertainment event of the year in early Hamilton. The organisation and management is in the hands of Hamilton’s most prominent citizens including business leaders, councillors and mayors.
- 1912 Club holds a Wednesday evening event which becomes the forerunner of club nights
- 1914 The club hosts its first international meeting.
- 1920 The club starts up again after a war recess under the leadership of C.R.B. ‘Copper’ Speight, the most important official in our early years.
- 1928 After years of work by Copper Speight and then L.W.W. Brown, and with Hamilton club at its core, Waikato achieves Sub Centre status.
- 1932 Members A.H. Malcolm and W. Fraser begin Waikato Secondary Schools Athletic Sports.
- 1935 The club begins a long stretch with A.H. Malcolm as President and C.J. Thompson his right hand man. Along with live wire club captain R.B. Joyes they thrust the club and sport onto centre stage, give the club its best years and pave the way for the success we see today.
- 1945 Waikato Centre achieves full Centre status, again with club members prominent.
- 1948 E.A. and D.M Taylor along with R.P. Luckie and M.W. Cooper all join the club about the same time and ultimately have an exceptional influence on the sport and club.
- 1952 M.L. Marshall and John ‘Dutch’ Holland becomes our first Olympians. Holland claims a bronze medal over 400 meter hurdles.
- 1970 Porritt Stadium opens, after many years of lobbying, fundraising and hard work.
- 1970‘s The club wins 3 national league titles in a row.
- 1980‘s Large international meets continue to be a feature of the track & field programme at Porritt Stadium as the club enjoys successful times.
- 1995 The club celebrates its centenary.
- 1998 Hamilton Athletic Club becomes a part of the new organisation Hamilton City Hawks.
- 2001 Hamilton City Hawks wins Waikato Sports Club of the Year.
- 2002 Club wins National Teams Competition Division II title.
- 2004 Club members win 25 National T&F championship titles.
- 2005 Club finishes third in National Teams Competition Div I.
- 2006 Club wins National Teams Competition Div I and wins over 30 NZ championship medals.