NEWBURY PARK, Calif.,
Feb. 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- In
its 35th year of honoring the nation's most elite high
school athletes, The Gatorade Company today announced Nico
Young of Newbury Park High School in
Newbury Park, Calif. is the
2019-20 Gatorade National Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year.
Young won the prestigious award for his accomplishments on and off
the field, joining an impressive group of former Gatorade National
Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year winners who have combined for
18 National Championships.
Young was surprised with the award in front of teammates,
coaches, friends and family at his school. Check out a video of the
announcement here.
The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic
excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and
exemplary character demonstrated on and off the field,
distinguishes Young as the nation's best high school boys cross
country runner. A national advisory panel comprised of
sport-specific experts and sports journalists helped select Young
from nearly 300,000 high school boys cross country runners
nationwide.
Competition for the national award is fierce. Young topped the
list of 51 state winners in boys cross country who have an
incredible list of accomplishments including 15 All-Americans. Of
this year's winners, 84% percent of the seniors will be on
scholarship this fall, more than 20 with a GPA of 4.0 or higher and
over 30 volunteering with at least two organizations.
Young is now a finalist for the most prestigious award in high
school sports, the Gatorade Male High School Athlete of the Year
award, which is announced at a special ceremony prior to The ESPY
Awards in July.
"Nico Young didn't shy away from
setting lofty goals for both himself and his Newbury Park teammates this past season," said
Erik Boal, editor for DyeStat.com.
"Those grand ambitions were not only met, but often exceeded during
one of the most dominant seasons in high school cross country
history. Although he raced fewer times than most of the country's
top athletes last fall, he established a new meet or division
standard in seven of eight outings, including the national 3-mile
cross country record at the Woodbridge Classic, along with the best
5K performance in Nike Cross
Nationals history to win a national championship and lead the
Panthers to the national team title."
The 5-foot-11, 135-pound senior raced to the national
championship this past season, breaking the tape at the Nike Cross
Nationals Final with a course-record time of 14:52.3 and leading
the Panthers to the national title as a team. Young also won the
Division 2 CIF state championship in 14:26.5. He also set a U.S.
prep three-mile record of 13:39.7 last fall in winning the
Woodbridge Classic and and broke the tape at the Southern Section
finals, the Marmonte League finals and the Clovis Invitational.
Moreover, Young has volunteered locally for three summers in a row
as a camp assistant at Many Mansions for underprivileged youth. He
has accomplished these athletic feats, all while maintaining a 4.68
GPA in the classroom.
"Nico Young was selected as this
year's Gatorade National Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year
because of his achievements on and off the field," said Gatorade
Senior Vice President and General Manager Brett O'Brien. "It is a prestigious honor and
we're excited to see what is next for this impressive
student-athlete."
Through Gatorade's cause marketing platform "Play it Forward,"
Young has the opportunity to award a $1,000 grant to a local or national youth sports
organization of his choosing. He is also eligible to submit an
essay to win one of twelve $10,000
spotlight grants for the organization of choice, which will be
announced throughout the year.
Each year a selection committee evaluates the nation's top
talent in the District of Columbia
and all 50 states, choosing national winners in 12 different
sports: football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country,
boys and girls basketball, baseball, softball, boys and girls
soccer, and boys and girls track and field. From the 12
national winners, one male and one female athlete are each named
Gatorade High School Athlete of the Year.
Since the program's inception in 1985, Gatorade Player of the
Year award recipients have won hundreds of professional and college
championships, and many have also turned into pillars in their
communities, becoming coaches, business owners and educators.
Previous winners include a distinguished list of athletes, such as
Peyton Manning, Abby Wambach, Karl-Anthony Towns, Derek Jeter and many other sports icons. To
learn more about the Gatorade Player of the Year program, check out
past winners or to nominate student-athletes, visit
www.Gatorade.com/POY, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GatoradePOY
or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/Gatorade.
About Gatorade
The Gatorade Company, a division of PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP), meets
the needs of consumers who participate in Sports and Fitness,
through brands that include Gatorade, Propel, Muscle Milk and
Bolt24. The solutions they provide are driven by a deep
understanding of the unique needs and occasions of different types
of sports and fitness. Gatorade, their marquee brand, is
underpinned by more than 50-year history of studying the best
athletes in the world and sports-nutrition research by the Gatorade
Sport Science Institute, allowing it to provide
scientifically-formulated products that meet athletes' needs both
on and off the field. For more information and a full list of
products, please visit www.gatorade.com.
About PepsiCo
PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers more than one billion
times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the
world. PepsiCo generated more than $64
billion in net revenue in 2018, driven by a complementary
food and beverage portfolio that includes Frito-Lay, Gatorade,
Pepsi-Cola, Quaker and Tropicana. PepsiCo's product portfolio
includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including
22 brands that generate more than $1
billion each in estimated annual retail sales.
At the heart of PepsiCo is Performance with Purpose – our
fundamental belief that the success of our company is inextricably
linked to the sustainability of the world around us. We believe
that continuously improving the products we sell, operating
responsibly to protect our planet and empowering people around the
world enable PepsiCo to run a successful global company that
creates long-term value for society and our shareholders. For more
information, visit www.pepsico.com.
PREVIOUS GATORADE
NATIONAL BOYS CROSS COUNTRY RUNNER OF THE YEAR
WINNERS
|
YEAR
|
NAME
|
HOMETOWN
|
STATUS
|
2018-19
|
Liam
Anderson
|
Larkspur,
CA
|
Stanford
University
|
2017-18
|
Anthony
Schwartz
|
Plantation,
FL
|
Auburn
University
|
2016-17
|
Casey
Clinger
|
American Fork,
UT
|
Brigham Young
University
|
2015-16
|
Andrew
Hunter
|
Purcellville,
VA
|
Tinman
Elite
|
2014-15
|
Grant
Fisher
|
Grand Blanc,
MI
|
Ran for Stanford
University
|
2013-14
|
Grant
Fisher
|
Grand Blanc,
MI
|
Ran for Stanford
University
|
2012-13
|
Edward
Cheserek
|
Newark, NJ
|
Ran for University of
Oregon
|
2011-12
|
Futsum
Zeinasellassie
|
Indianapolis,
IN
|
Ran for Northern
Arizona University
|
2010-11
|
Lukas
Verzbicas
|
Orland Park,
IL
|
Ran for University of
Oregon
|
2009-10
|
Lukas
Verzbicas
|
Orland Park,
IL
|
Ran for University of
Oregon
|
2008-09
|
Reed
Connor
|
The Woodlands,
TX
|
Ran for University of
Wisconsin
|
2007-08
|
Chris
Derrick
|
Naperville,
IL
|
Ran for Stanford
University
|
View original
content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nico-young-named-2019-20-gatorade-national-boys-cross-country-runner-of-the-year-301008642.html
SOURCE The Gatorade Company