Jaida Ross, a star shot put athlete for the Oregon Ducks track and field team, had the season of a lifetime throughout the past year.
Not only did Ross win the NCAA outdoor title in her event but she also set the collegiate shot put record at 20.01 meters (65.65 feet) and put together one of the most impressive collegiate performances of all time with four of her six attempts landing over 19 feet.
Ross wasn't done when the NCAA season wrapped up though. Just a few weeks later, Ross was back in Oregon's historic Hayward Field to compete at the USATF team trials for her chance at a spot on the Olympic roster.
To put it simply, the young star shocked the world. Ross earned a third-place finish at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials and then went on to finish fourth overall at the Paris Olympic Games this summer. Now, the Duck is up for one of the most highly coveted awards in college athletics: The Bowerman Trophy.
What. A. Season. Bowerman award show tonight @runnerspace coverage starts at 3:20 pm ET #GoDucks pic.twitter.com/D8ldnwzFc7
— oregontf (@OregonTF) December 19, 2024
Alongside Ross as the female finalists for the award are Florida's distance star Parker Valby and Harvard's distance star Maia Ramsden.
How to watch The Bowerman award show
- Date & Time: Dec. 19, 2024 at 3:20 p.m. PT
- Location: Orlando, FL
- TV/Streaming: Runnerspace.com
On the men's side of the award are Texas' decathlon star Leo Neugebauer, Georgia's 400-meter star Christopher Morales Williams, and Texas Tech's star hurdler Caleb Dean.
The last Oregon female to win the Bowerman was Duck sprinter Raevyn Rogers in 2017, just a few years after Oregon's Jenna Prandini and Laura Roesler won the Trophy in back-to-back seasons. The Oregon men haven't won the award since Jalen Rupp and Ashton Eaton won the Bowerman in 2009 and 2010.