Kerley, Mu Nominated for USATF Athletes of the Year
Nov 02, 2021 | Track and Field
INDIANAPOLIS – Former Texas A&M track & field national champions Fred Kerley and Athing Mu have been nominated for USA Track & Field Athletes of the Year, the organization announced Tuesday.
The Nike professionals have each been nominated for USATF Athlete of the Year in their respective genders, the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Athlete of the Year on the women's side and the Jesse Owens Athlete of the Year on the men's side. The duo was also nominated for the Breakthrough Performer of the Year, while Mu was nominated for the Best Olympic Track Performance.
Kerley highlighted his 2021 season with an Olympic 100m silver medal at the Tokyo Games. He clocked a personal best time of 9.84 in the finals and 9.96 in the semifinal. The Taylor, Texas, native, became the first Aggie in program history to medal in the short sprints.
Prior to the games at the U.S. Olympic Trials, Kerley placed third in the 100m at 9.86. He became the third male in world history to run a sub-10 second in the 100m, sub-20 second in the 200m and sub-44 second in the 400m in their career.
Mu had a legendary 2021 season that was decorated with two Olympic gold medals. The 19-year-old ran an American 800m record time of 1:55.21 to become the first American female to win Olympic gold in 53 years. A few days later, she anchored the 4x400m relay to victory. Following her time in Tokyo, Mu won her Diamond League debut on Aug. 21 bettering her American record with a time of 1:55.04.
Prior to signing with Nike, Mu dominated the collegiate ranks. She set 11 collegiate all-time top-12 marks, including six all-time collegiate records. Individually, she owns the indoor 600m (1:25.80), indoor 800m (1:58.40), outdoor 400m (49.57) and outdoor 800m (1:57.73) collegiate records. She anchored two collegiate record relays, the indoor 4x400m (3:26.27/50.27 split) and the outdoor 4x400m (3:22.34/48.85 split). Mu ended the season with eight Texas A&M records.
Her season best indoor 800m time of 1:58.40 currently stands as the world under-20 indoor 800m record.
She finished the campaign a four-time First Team All-American, including a three-time NCAA Champion winning the outdoor 400m title, as well as a member of the 4x400m relay that claimed the indoor and outdoor titles. She combined to score 23 points in NCAA Championships action, 12.5 outdoors and 10.5 indoors. The speedster claimed the SEC indoor 800m title (1:58.40), outdoor 400m (49.84) and 4x400m (3:26.17) titles.
For her efforts, she was named the United States Track & Field Cross Country Coaches Association National Indoor and Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year, as well as the SEC Indoor and Outdoor Freshman Runner of the Year and the Track and Field News Indoor U.S. Woman of the Year.
Presented annually since 1981, the Jesse Owens Award and Jackie Joyner-Kersee Award are USATF's highest accolades. Recognizing the most outstanding male and female athletes, winners are selected by a combination of fan and media votes.
Selected directly by fans, voting is now open and the winners will be announced at the 2021 Night of Legends on Saturday, Dec. 4 as part of the annual meeting in Orlando, Florida. The event will also include the USATF National Track & Field Hall of Fame class of 2021 induction ceremony.
For the most up-to-date information on Texas A&M Track & Field/Cross Country, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (@aggietfxc).
The Nike professionals have each been nominated for USATF Athlete of the Year in their respective genders, the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Athlete of the Year on the women's side and the Jesse Owens Athlete of the Year on the men's side. The duo was also nominated for the Breakthrough Performer of the Year, while Mu was nominated for the Best Olympic Track Performance.
Kerley highlighted his 2021 season with an Olympic 100m silver medal at the Tokyo Games. He clocked a personal best time of 9.84 in the finals and 9.96 in the semifinal. The Taylor, Texas, native, became the first Aggie in program history to medal in the short sprints.
Prior to the games at the U.S. Olympic Trials, Kerley placed third in the 100m at 9.86. He became the third male in world history to run a sub-10 second in the 100m, sub-20 second in the 200m and sub-44 second in the 400m in their career.
Mu had a legendary 2021 season that was decorated with two Olympic gold medals. The 19-year-old ran an American 800m record time of 1:55.21 to become the first American female to win Olympic gold in 53 years. A few days later, she anchored the 4x400m relay to victory. Following her time in Tokyo, Mu won her Diamond League debut on Aug. 21 bettering her American record with a time of 1:55.04.
Prior to signing with Nike, Mu dominated the collegiate ranks. She set 11 collegiate all-time top-12 marks, including six all-time collegiate records. Individually, she owns the indoor 600m (1:25.80), indoor 800m (1:58.40), outdoor 400m (49.57) and outdoor 800m (1:57.73) collegiate records. She anchored two collegiate record relays, the indoor 4x400m (3:26.27/50.27 split) and the outdoor 4x400m (3:22.34/48.85 split). Mu ended the season with eight Texas A&M records.
Her season best indoor 800m time of 1:58.40 currently stands as the world under-20 indoor 800m record.
She finished the campaign a four-time First Team All-American, including a three-time NCAA Champion winning the outdoor 400m title, as well as a member of the 4x400m relay that claimed the indoor and outdoor titles. She combined to score 23 points in NCAA Championships action, 12.5 outdoors and 10.5 indoors. The speedster claimed the SEC indoor 800m title (1:58.40), outdoor 400m (49.84) and 4x400m (3:26.17) titles.
For her efforts, she was named the United States Track & Field Cross Country Coaches Association National Indoor and Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year, as well as the SEC Indoor and Outdoor Freshman Runner of the Year and the Track and Field News Indoor U.S. Woman of the Year.
Presented annually since 1981, the Jesse Owens Award and Jackie Joyner-Kersee Award are USATF's highest accolades. Recognizing the most outstanding male and female athletes, winners are selected by a combination of fan and media votes.
Selected directly by fans, voting is now open and the winners will be announced at the 2021 Night of Legends on Saturday, Dec. 4 as part of the annual meeting in Orlando, Florida. The event will also include the USATF National Track & Field Hall of Fame class of 2021 induction ceremony.
For the most up-to-date information on Texas A&M Track & Field/Cross Country, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (@aggietfxc).
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