Kapaa boys, Island School girls win Rotary track meet at Vidinha Stadium

Kapaa High School’s boys and Island School’s girls turned the Rotary Clubs of Kauai track meet into a clear statement about which programs have built the deepest benches on the island. At the new Vidinha Stadium facility in Lihue, Kapaa won the boys title with 129.5 points, well ahead of Kauai High School’s 56, Waimea’s 53 and Island School’s 12.5. Island School answered on the girls side with 131 points, topping Kapaa’s 83, Waimea’s 10 and Kauai High School’s seven.

The Rotary meet has long carried special weight because it is the only Kauai track meet where athletes earn medals for their performances. That made the Saturday results more than a simple scoreboard; they offered a midseason gauge of which schools are producing consistent results across multiple events. Kapaa’s boys, with Colten Nagahisa among the names leading the effort, showed enough balance to separate from the field. Island School’s girls did the same, building a margin that suggested depth rather than a single breakout performance.

Those team totals also fit a larger pattern in Kauai Interscholastic Federation track. In 2023, Island School won the Rotary meet with 328 points, while Kapaa finished third with 229 combined points. The swings from year to year show how quickly the balance of power can move, but they also underscore a familiar reality: when school programs are well supported, the island’s smaller track rosters can still produce championship-level results.

The meet unfolded against a busy weekend around Vidinha Stadium, where construction has reshaped access and scheduling. More than 1,000 people took part in the 47th Visitor Industry Charity Walk, whose route was shortened because of work at the stadium and the new Kauai Police Activities League sports complex next door. Walkers, joggers, runners and keiki started at the Vidinha Stadium soccer fields, then followed Hoolako Road to Rice Street, went uptown to Umi Street and the Hardy Street roundabout, and returned on Rice Street.

Vidinha Stadium itself has been closed to the general public since March 7, 2025, for a $12.2 million rehabilitation project, with reopening now expected in the fall. The adjacent KPAL complex, a 4,000-square-foot facility with training bays for boxing, wrestling and jiu-jitsu, plus a weight room and fitness area, is another sign that the area is becoming a central corridor for youth sports, charity events and major county gatherings. The next test came a week later at the Kauai Interscholastic Federation championships, where Kapaa boys and Island School girls repeated their winning form at Vidinha and field events had to be moved to the Voyager campus because of ongoing construction.