Mihaljevic, Wynne Named to Bowerman Watch List
Jan. 5, 2017
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NEW ORLEANS-Virginia NCAA champions Filip Mihaljevic and Henry Wynne have been named to the Bowerman 2017 Men’s Preseason Watch List, as announced by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
Virginia is the only school to have two members on the men’s 10-member watch list for collegiate track and field’s top honor. It is also the first time UVA has had two student-athletes on the watch list at the same time. Two-time NCAA champion Robby Andrews was a semifinalist for the award in 2011 and named to the preseason watch list in 2012.
The 2016 ACC Outdoor Men’s Field Performer of the Year, Mihaljevic (Livno, Bosnia and Herzegovina) captured the NCAA title in the outdoor shot put in 2016 with a Virginia outdoor record of 20.71m (67′ 11.5″). He also finished fifth in the discus at the national meet. He won the ACC Championship in both the discus and shot put and was named ACC Outdoor Championship Men’s Field MVP.
Mihaljevic was also the NCAA runner-up during the 2016 indoor season and earned a bronze medal in the shot put at the IAAF World Indoor Championships with an ACC-record mark of 20.87m (68′ 5.75″). He closed his 2016 season by competing at the Rio Olympics in the shot put for Croatia.
Wynne (Westport, Conn.), the 2016 ACC Indoor and Outdoor Men’s Track and Performer of the Year, won the mile at the NCAA Indoor Championships and was ACC champion in the mile and distance medley relay. He became the third Cavalier to break four minutes in the mile when he ran 3:58.74 at the Thomas Terrier Invitational and also set a new Virginia record in the 3,000 meters (7:53.89) at the Fastrack National Qualifier.
In the 2016 outdoor season, Wynne was the ACC champion in the 1,500 meters and finished third in the event at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. He broke the Virginia record in the 1,500m (3:38.05) at the Virginia Challenge. Wynne concluded his 2016 season winning gold in the 1,500m while representing the United States at the NACAC Under-23 Championships in San Salvador, El Salvador.
The 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.
Arkansas’ Jarrison Lawson and Texas’ Courtney Okolo are the reigning winners of The Bowerman, which is named for legendary Oregon track & field and cross country coach Bill Bowerman.
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.
Bowerman 2017 Men’s Preseason Watch List
Edward Cheserek, Oregon ^#
Christian Coleman, Tennessee *
Eric Futch, Florida *
Filip Mihaljevic, Virginia *
Michael Norman, USC *
Byron Robinson, Texas *
Curtis Thompson, Mississippi State *
Lindon Victor, Texas A&M ^
Rudy Winkler, Cornell *
Henry Wynne, Virginia *
(* = first-time Watch List appearance; ^ = 2016 semifinalist; # = 2016 finalist)