COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Two-time Olympic gold medalist Athing Mu has been named one of five finalists for the 91st Amateur Athletic Union James E. Sullivan Award presented by Eastbay, the organization announced.
Mu is one of five finalists for the historic award. The winner is scheduled to be announced at the AAU James E. Sullivan Award Ceremony on Oct. 22 at the Rosen Centre in Orlando, Fla.
The 19-year-old, looks to become the second Aggie in history to win the prestigious award. Randy Matson won the award in 1967.
In early August, Mu 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 Olympic gold. Since turning professional on June 19, Mu has gone an unblemished 7-0 in 800m races, and bettered her American record stopping the clock at 1:55.04 to win her Wanda Diamond League debut on August 21.
Mu rewrote the record books during the 2020-21 collegiate season, setting 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.
Mu garnered four NCAA First Team All-America honors, and won three NCAA event titles (indoor and outdoor 4x400m, outdoor 400m). Additionally, the middle-distance sprinter won three Southeastern Conference titles (indoor 800m, outdoor 400m and outdoor 4x400m).
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.
91st AAU James E. Sullivan Award Finalists
Simone Biles - Gymnastics, USA Gymnastics
Caeleb Dressel – Swimming, USA Swimming
Kevin Kopps – Baseball, University of Arkansas
Athing Mu – Track & Field, Texas A&M University
Maddie Musselman – Water Polo, USA Water Polo
About the AAU James E. Sullivan Award
Known as the "Oscar" of sports awards and older than The Heisman, the AAU Sullivan Award honors the outstanding amateur athlete in the United States. It has been presented annually by the AAU since 1930 as a salute to founder and past president of the Amateur Athletic Union, and pioneer in amateur sports, James E. Sullivan. Based on the qualities of leadership, character, sportsmanship, and the ideals of amateurism, the AAU Sullivan Award goes far beyond athletic accomplishments and honors those who have shown strong moral character.
The AAU Sullivan Award has been presented annually since 1930 to the most outstanding athlete in the United States, including famed Olympians Michelle Kwan (2001), Michael Phelps (2003), Paul Hamm (2004) and Shawn Johnson (2008); University of Tennessee quarterback Peyton Manning (1997), Penn State guard John Urschel (2013); 200m backstroke world record holder Missy Franklin (2012) and University of Oregon standout Sabrina Ionescu (2019).
