NEW ORLEANS—Two-time semifinalist
Chris Nilsen was named to the preseason watch list for The Bowerman on Tuesday afternoon by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
The Bowerman, dubbed the Heisman of collegiate track and field, is presented annually to the most outstanding male and female athlete in the nation. The award debuted in 2009 and winners are announced at a ceremony in mid-December in conjunction with the USTFCCCA annual convention.
Nilsen makes his third-straight preseason Bowerman watch list. With 19 watch list appearances during his career, he is the active leader having earned a nod on the watch list in each of the four years of his Coyote career. He's tied for fifth on all-time watch list appearances behind Edward Cheserek (29), Lawi Lalang (24), Ryan Crouser (21), Grant Holloway (20) and Jeff Demps (19).
Hailing from Kansas City, Missouri, Nilsen is a three-time NCAA Champion in the pole vault. He vaulted a personal best and NCAA meet record height of 19 feet, 6 ¼ inches (5.95m), at the 2019 NCAA Outdoor Championships. En route to defending his NCAA crown, he bested then-world leader and freshman phenom Mondo Duplantis on the collegiate scene's biggest stage. Nilsen enters his senior campaign as a six-time All-American having never finished lower than third at a national meet.
Nilsen also took home the gold at the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, Peru, last August.
Only two men – Nilsen and LSU's JuVaughn Harrison – return to the watch list after finishing as semifinalists in 2019.
Nilsen and the Coyote vaulters return to action at the National Pole Vault Summit in Reno, Nevada, on Jan. 17-18. The Coyotes will also send a contingent to the Bison Team Cup in Fargo, North Dakota, on Jan. 18.
The Bowerman Preseason Watch List
Trey Cunningham, Florida State, Jr., Hurdles
Devin Dixon, Texas A&M, Sr., Middle Distance/Relays
Gleb Dudarev, Kansas, Sr., Throws
Johannes Erm, Georgia, Jr., Combined Events
Quincy Hall, South Carolina, Sr., Sprints/Hurdles
JuVaughn Harrison, LSU, Jr., Jumps
Oliver Hoare, Wisconsin, Sr., Middle Distance
Chengetayi Mapaya, TCU, Jr., Jumps
Chris Nilsen, South Dakota, Sr., Pole Vault
Trevor Stewart, North Carolina A&T, Jr., Sprints
