University of Colorado Athletics
Vaughn Named Big 12 Athlete of the Week
May 06, 2008 | General, Track and Field
IRVING, Texas-- University of Colorado senior Brent Vaughn was named the Big 12 Men's Track & Field Athlete of the Week as announced by the league's offices Tuesday afternoon.
Vaughn ran the top collegiate time in the 5,000-meter run when he recorded a mark of 13 minutes, 18.46 seconds at the Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational on Sunday night at Stanford University. Vaughn placed second overall; the only runner to beat him was Bernard Lagat (13:16.29), the reigning IAAF World Champion.
His time is the second best mark run this season by an American.
Vaughn's time is the fourth fastest in the world. The top mark is 13:11.99, set by Australia's Craig Mattram. The second best time is by Shadrack Kosger (13:13.51). Both of those times were set on Feb. 21, in Melbourne, Australia. The third best time belongs to Lagat.
To go along with the honor, the Aurora, Colo., native smashed the CU 5k record by more than six seconds. He surpassed Jorge Torres' record of 13:24.56, set on May 3, 2003, also at Stanford. Vaughn coincidently ran against Torres who finished seventh (13:30.09) on Sunday.
The previous top collegiate 5k mark was 13:29.12, set by Jacob Korir of Eastern Kentucky. He placed sixth with a time of 13:29.48.
This is Vaughn's first Big 12 Athlete of the Week honor of his career. Fellow seniors Stephen Pifer (3/25) and Billy Nelson (4/22) were also named Big 12 Athletes of the Week this season, notching their first career accolades.
This is the first time in the history of the Big 12 that CU had three athletes selected for the weekly honor in one season. The CU women recorded two honors during the 2005 outdoor season.
The Buffs are off this weekend and will host the 2008 Big 12 Outdoor Track & Field Championships on May 16-18 at Potts Field. Vaughn has won two of the last three 5k titles (he won the 10,000-meter run in 2006 and did not compete in the 5k race that year) and is the favorite to win the title once again.
