MONTVERDE, Fla., July 6, 2023
/PRNewswire/ -- In its 38th year of honoring the
nation's most elite high school athletes, Gatorade today announced
Issam Asinga of Montverde Academy in Montverde, Fla. is the 2022-23 Gatorade
National Boys Track and Field Player of the Year. Asinga won the
prestigious award for his accomplishments on and off the field,
joining an impressive group of former Gatorade National Boys Track
and Field Players of the Year who have combined for more than 19
gold medals and 14 National Championships.
Asinga was surprised with the trophy by his family, coaches and
teammates at school. Check out a video of the announcement
here.
The Gatorade Player of the Year award recognizes athletes not
just for their excellence on the playing surface, but for their
commitment in the classroom and impact in their community. Asinga
was selected from more than half a million other student-athletes
who compete in boys track and field nationwide, topping the list of
state winners in track and field who collectively boast an
incredible list of accomplishments, including 36 with signed
National Letters of Intent to compete in boys track and field at
Division I colleges/universities and 19 with a GPA of 4.0 and
above.
"No prep track athlete across America grabbed more attention
this spring than Issam Asinga," said Rich
Gonzalez, editor of PrepCalTrack.com. "As if eclipsing the
national 200-meter record wasn't enough, he dropped four,
sub-10-second performances in the 100, which were wind-aided. Among
his season highlights was defeating reigning 200-meter world
champion and pro Noah Lyles head-on
at 100 meters."
The 6-foot, 178-pound senior broke one national record and set
an all-conditions national record in a second event this past
season. Asinga crossed the finish line third in the 200-meter dash
at the Corky/Crofoot Shootout with a time of 19.87 seconds to break
the national record. He also clocked a 9.83 in the 100 dash in two
separate wind-aided races, the fastest prep clockings under all
conditions. Asinga also won the national title in the 100 at New
Balance Nationals Outdoor, while his top wind-legal 100 time of
10.02 seconds at the Star Athletic Sprint Series ranked No. 3 in
U.S. prep history. He also took second in the 200, clocking a
20.25, against a field of pros at the NYC Grand Prix.
Asinga has volunteered locally on behalf of Habitat For Humanity
and the Youth Impact Project. A member of the DiscoveryBound
National Leadership Council, he has also donated his time with
DreamPlex as a youth coach for children with intellectual and
physical challenges. A photographer and videographer for his school
as well, he has spent many hours performing cleanup and clearing
duties at an equine center.
Asinga has maintained a 3.15 GPA in the classroom. He has signed
a National Letter of Intent to compete on scholarship at
Texas A&M University this fall.
In addition to excellence on and off the field of play, Gatorade
Players of the Year also pay it forward for the next generation. As
part of Gatorade's Play it Forward initiative, Asinga will receive
a grant to give to one of Gatorade's social impact partners –
Athlete Ally, Laureus USA, Move
United, Women's Sports Foundation and Up2Us Sports – supporting
Gatorade's ambition to fuel the future of sport.
"Issam is a leader not only on the field, but also a driving
force in his community," said Gatorade Portfolio president and
general manager Michael Del Pozzo.
"As an incredible leader whose impact spans beyond the stat sheet,
Asinga embodies all the qualities rooted in Gatorade Player of the
Year."
Each year, a selection committee evaluates the nation's top
talent to choose one state winner from each of the 50 states as
well as Washington D.C., in 12
different sports: football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross
country, boys and girls basketball, baseball, softball, boys and
girls soccer, and boys and girls track & field. In all, 608
athletes are honored each year. From the pool of state winners, one
national winner is selected in each of the 12 sports.
To learn more about the Gatorade Player of the Year program,
check out past winners or to nominate student-athletes, visit
playeroftheyear.gatorade.com or follow us on social media on
Facebook at facebook.com/GatoradePOY, Instagram at
instagram.com/Gatorade and Twitter at twitter.com/Gatorade.
About The Gatorade Portfolio
The Gatorade Portfolio, a division of PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP), is
a connected performance and wellness ecosystem built to fuel all
athletes and exercisers. Bringing together Gatorade, Fast Twitch,
Propel, Evolve and Muscle Milk, the Gatorade Portfolio is the most
complete offering in the category today, with a broad range of
personalized solutions at every stage of the athlete journey.
This integrated system of brands is built on Gatorade's 57-year
history of studying athletes and is fueling the future of athletic
performance and wellness by delivering solutions across hydration,
protein, energy and all-day nutrition to fuel consumers, no matter
how or why they sweat. For more information and a full list of
product offerings, please visit www.gatorade.com.
About PepsiCo
PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers more than one billion
times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the
world. PepsiCo generated more than $86
billion in net revenue in 2022, driven by a complementary
beverage and convenient foods portfolio that includes Lay's,
Doritos, Cheetos, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Mountain Dew, Quaker, and
SodaStream. PepsiCo's product portfolio includes a wide range of
enjoyable foods and beverages, including many iconic brands that
generate more than $1 billion each in
estimated annual retail sales.
Guiding PepsiCo is our vision to Be the Global Leader in
Beverages and Convenient Foods by Winning with pep+ (PepsiCo
Positive). pep+ is our strategic end-to-end transformation that
puts sustainability and human capital at the center of how we will
create value and growth by operating within planetary boundaries
and inspiring positive change for planet and people. For more
information, visit www.pepsico.com, and follow on Twitter,
Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn @PepsiCo.
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SOURCE The Gatorade Company