Following Record Breaking Year Parker Valby Takes Home the Bowerman Award

The incredible final collegiate season for Valby is topped off with the highest honor for competitive runners

Jun 24, 2024; Eugene, OR, USA; Parker Valby reacts after placing fourth in the women's 5,000m in 14:51.44 during the US Olympic Team Trials at Hayward Field. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

For professional track and field and cross country athlete, Parker Valby, 2024 will be a year for the books. On December 19, the six-time NCAA champion was awarded the Bowerman, the highest honor in college track and field.

This title will cap off a season full of hard work and triumphs as the 22-year-old Floridian set three NCAA records, in addition to winning four national titles, and competing in the Summer Olympics in 2024 alone.

Valby's season of victory started before the 2024 calendar ever turned when she broke the NCAA record indoor 5,000m in Boston last December. Finishing the race at 14:56.11, she bcame the first female collegiate runner to break the 15-minute barrier for the 5,000m. The momentum of that record was only increased when Valby broke her own record for the 5,000m three months later at the NCAA Indoor Championship with a time of 14:52.79 and then recording the third-fastest time in NCAA history during the 3,000m event the next day.

The success of the indoor championships springboarded Valby to an additional record-breaking outdoor track and field season. The 10,000m record was broken by 28 seconds, with Valby completing the 25 laps in 30:50.43 and the 5,000m event at the NCAA Outdoor Championship was completed with a time of 14:52.18, which is a new outdoor collegiate record. She completed her final collegiate season by sweeping the board at the NCAA women's track and field long-distance during the 10,000m.

Following graduation, Valby made the Olympic team in two events and ran the 10,000m in Paris, finishing in 11th with a time of 30:59.28. With this stunning season, it is no surprise that Valby would win the Bowerman Award, an honor given annually to the top male and female NCAA track and field athletes.

Although this season was a success story for the Florida native, it didn't come without challenges. Her hard work was met with injuries and for the first part of her collegiate career, she ran less than most top runners, but as they say, "slow and steady wins the race." By the time Valby's senior year rolled around, her intense cross-training regime kept her injuries at bay and her hard work definitely paid off.

In October, Valby signed a deal with New Balance to represent their brand, which is a huge for distance runners right out of college. Currently, she is training under Mark Coogan with New Balance Boston and plans to make her pro debut in February after some rigorous altitude training in Arizona in January.