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Senior Angela Bizzarri attended the 80th Annual AAU Sullivan Award ceremony on Wednesday at the New York Athletic Club.
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April 14, 2010
NEW YORK - Illinois cross country and track and field senior Angela Bizzarri attended the 80th Annual AAU Sullivan Award ceremony on Wednesday at the New York Athletic Club. The presentation, which was hosted by Olympians Tim Morehouse and Sarah Hughes, named ultra-marathoner Amy Palmeiro-Winters as the Top Amateur Athlete of 2009 and recognized the other finalists, including Bizzarri, soccer player Zak Boggs of South Florida, Olympic luger Erin Hamlin, Penn State volleyball standout Megan Hodge and Army baseball player Clint Moore.
Palmeiro-Winters won the Arizona Road Racers 24 hours run to the Future (130.4 miles), was first amputee to qualify for Western States 100 mile ultra marathon, first amputee to run the Mount Washington Uphill Road Race and named one of the top ten runners of the decade in the world by the Washington Times.
The original top 14 nominees were selected from submissions to the AAU Sullivan Committee, and then narrowed to six finalists when America voted for their favorite athlete online at USA Today combined with ballots from National Governing Bodies', Members of the Media and D1 Sports Information Directors.
According to its website, the AAU Sullivan is known as the "Oscar" of sports awards and is older than The Heisman. It has been presented annually by the AAU since 1930 as a salute to founder and past president of the Amateur Athletic Union, and a 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.
Notable past winners include: Wilma Rudolph (athletics), Mark Spitz (swimming), Greg Louganis (diving), Jackie Joyner-Kersey (athletics), Jim Abbott (baseball), Michael Johnson (track), Peyton Manning (football), Michelle Kwan (figure skating), Michael Phelps (swimming), Tim Tebow (football) and Shawn Johnson (gymnastics).
More information on the AAU Sullivan award can be found HERE.
