Oregon sprinter Micah Williams named Pac-12 track athlete of the year
It’s been a banner year for Oregon star freshman Micah Williams.
After bursting onto the scene and establishing himself as one of the top sprinters in the country this spring, Williams has been recognized as the Pac-12’s track athlete of the year, the conference announced on Thursday.
Williams is the fifth athlete in Oregon program history to receive the honor, joining Galen Rupp (2009), Andrew Wheating (2010), Devon Allen (2016), Kyree King (2017) and Cravon Gillespie (2019).
At last weekend’s Pac-12 track and field championships in Eugene, Williams racked up 21.5 points and was named male athlete of the meet after winning the 100-meter dash and 200-meter dash in thrilling fashion. His 100-meter time of 9.93 seconds was a meet record and the sixth-fastest time ever by a collegian.
His 200-meter time of 20.05 was a lifetime best and the second-fastest time ever for an Oregon athlete. He also ran the second leg for the Ducks’ third-place 4×100-meter relay team.
Oregon coach Robert Johnson was named by the conference as the men’s and women’s coach of the year after leading both teams to conference titles last weekend.
This marks the 11th coach of the year honor for Johnson at Oregon, and it is the fourth time he has swept the men’s and women’s awards.
Oregon will look to build on last weekend’s momentum at West regionals next week in Fayetteville, Ark. The three-day meet is set to begin May 25.
