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Fan Voting Now Open For 2016 The Bowerman Award - The BowermanPublished by
NEW ORLEANS — How strong are the finalists for the 2016 version of The Bowerman Award? It’s going to make the voters’ jobs incredibly tough. That’s why we’re asking for your help once again. Today marks the start of the annual Fan Vote component of The Bowerman Award selection process. It runs through July 1 and is open to anybody in the world with a valid email address. You may vote up to five times per day (per gender) from the same email address, regardless of device. CLICK HERE TO VOTE NOW"The Year of the Vault" captured the public’s attention in 2015 as Akron’s Shawn Barber and Stephen F. Austin’sDemi Payne each won the fan vote. More than 50,000 votes were cast last year as Barber and Payne got a head-start on the rest of the finalists. Who do you have a chance to vote for this year? Men’s Finalists Texas A&M’s Donavan Brazier: The freshman phenom ran the fifth fastest time over 800 meters in collegiate history indoors (1:45.93) and then broke Jim Ryun’s 50-year-old record outdoors (1:43.55) on his way to the NCAA title. Oregon’s Edward Cheserek: The first three-time finalist in the history of The Bowerman Award added four more individual titles (five total) to his legendary haul and became the first man since Galen Rup to wear all major distance crowns in the same academic year (3000-5000-DMR-5000-10000). Arkansas’ Jarrion Lawson: The Razorback joined Jesse Owens as the only men in NCAA history to complete the long jump-100-200 triple at the NCAA Outdoor Championships (Owens did it twice) and broke the modern-day scoring record at the meet with 31.5 points. Lawson also won the indoor long jump title and placed fifth in the 60. Women’s Finalists Texas’ Courtney Okolo: She was the Queen of the Quarter Mile in 2016 as the Carrollton, Texas native swept the 400-meter crowns and anchored two winning 4×400 relay teams. Okolo lowered her outdoor collegiate record to 49.71 and became the first woman in collegiate history to go sub-50 seconds. Georgia’s Keturah Orji: Collegiate records weren’t enough for her this year, so she set her sights on the American record. Orji dominated the triple jump this season and swept the slate clean (indoor/outdoor) and broke the outdoor collegiate record and set an American record in the process at NCAAs. Mississippi’s Raven Saunders: She set the indoor and outdoor collegiate records in the shot put, of which the latter stood for 33 years before she turned it to dust at Hayward Field. Once fans cast their vote, they can spread the word about their favorite finalists and encourage others to do the same. Share the voting link and use the following hashtags on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to promote your favorite finalists (Posts do not count to the overall vote total). #Brazier4Bowerman – Donavan Brazier #Cheserek4Bowerman – Edward Cheserek #Lawson4Bowerman – Jarrion Lawson #Okolo4Bowerman – Courtney Okolo #Orji4Bowerman – Keturah Orji #Saunders4Bowerman – Raven Saunders Online fan voting started in 2009 with more than 250,000 votes having been cast since. Winners of the fan vote receive a first-place vote to their overall total. Paper balloting by The Bowerman Advisory Board, past winners, selected media personnel, statisticians, and collegiate administrators is also underway until August 2. An independent accounting firm will collect, tabulate, and certify final results and will keep the result secret until the envelope is opened in December. Remember: Only consider performances that occurred from the beginning of the indoor season through the end of the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Any performance that occurred during that timeframe — even if it wasn’t a purely collegiate competition — can be counted, like the IAAF World Indoor Championships. Anything before that time (cross country) or after (U.S. Olympic Trials, select Diamond League meetings, etc.) should not factor into the decision. WINNER SELECTION PROCESSThe Bowerman Voters will receive ballots listing each of the finalists and must rank them by first, second and third choice. First-place votes will receive three points, second place will notch two, and third will receive one point. The finalist with the highest point total will be declared the winner. The Bowerman Voters consist of:
THE BOWERMAN PAST FINALISTS & AWARD HISTORYMEN 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 WOMEN 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Combined Genders Oregon (10): Ashton Eaton (2)*, Galen Rupp*, Laura Roesler*, Jenna Prandini*, Brianne Theisen, Andrew Wheating, Edward Cheserek (3) All-Time Finalists by Conference Pac-12 (18): SEC (12): Big 12 (8): ACC (3): Big Ten (2): One Each: ABOUT THE BOWERMANThe Bowerman, which debuted in 2009, is presented annually by the USTFCCCA to the most outstanding male and female collegiate track & field athletes in the nation. Oregon’s Jenna Prandini and Florida’s Marquis Dendy are the reigning winners of The Bowerman, which is named for legendary Oregon track & field and cross country coach Bill Bowerman. Past winners include Olympic gold medalist, four-time World Champion and decathlon world-record holder Ashton Eaton (2010), 10,000-meter Olympic silver medalist Galen Rupp (2009), 2011 IAAF World Champion at 1500 meters Jenny Simpson (2009), 2013 100-meter hurdles World Champion Brianna Rollins (2013) as well as 2012 Olympic high jump bronze medalist and 2015 World Champion Derek Drouin (2013). Bowerman served the sport of track and field in numerous ways. His leadership in the USTFCCCA’s predecessor organization, the National Collegiate Track Coaches Association, and his contributions to NCAA track and field and the running community as a whole are among his many lasting legacies. For more information on The Bowerman, the award, the trophy and Bill Bowerman himself, visit TheBowerman.org. ABOUT THE USTFCCCAThe U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) is a non-profit professional organization representing cross country and track & field coaches of all levels. The organization represents over 9,000 coaching members encompassing 94% of all NCAA track & field programs (DI, DII, and DIII) and includes members representing the NAIA, NJCAA as well as a number of state high school coaches associations. The USTFCCCA serves as an advocate for cross country and track & field coaches, providing a leadership structure to assist the needs of a diverse membership, serving as a lobbyist for coaches’ interests, and working as a liaison between the various stakeholders in the sports of cross country and track & field. Read the full article at: www.ustfccca.org
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