SAN FRANCISCO, June 27, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- In its 32^nd year of honoring the nation's best high school athletes, The Gatorade Company today announced Sydney McLaughlin of Union Catholic High School (Scotch Plains, N.J.) as its 2016-17 Gatorade National Girls Track & Field Athlete of the Year. McLaughlin was surprised with the news on a trolley tour in San Francisco, Calif. by U.S. Olympian Allyson Felix.

Check out the surprise video here.

"I still remember the day I was honored as the Gatorade National Girls Track & Field Athlete of the Year and winning the award is one of those moments I'll never forget," said Felix. "Winning this award once is such a rare accomplishment, so to win it again, is exciting for her. I'm glad I was able to be part of today's celebration by surprising Sydney for the second-straight year."

The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the track, distinguishes McLaughlin as the nation's best high school girls track & field athlete. A national advisory panel comprised of sport-specific experts and sports journalists helped select McLaughlin from nearly 478,000 girls track & field athletes nationwide. McLaughlin is now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade Female High School Athlete of the Year award, to be presented at a special ceremony prior to The ESPY Awards in July.

The returning Gatorade Female High School Athlete of the Year, McLaughlin broke her own national high school and World Junior (Under-20) records in the 400-meter intermediate hurdles with a time of 54.03 seconds at the Non-Public A championship meet this past season. The 5-foot-9 senior also won the 400-meter dash in a meet-record 51.88 and the 200-meter dash in a state-record 22.96, both of which ranked as the No. 1 times among U.S. prep competitors in 2017 at the time of her selection. A 2016 U.S. Olympian, McLaughlin won the 400 hurdles at this month's New Balance Nationals Outdoor in 54.22—the seventh national title of her career to go with a World Youth title. The 17-year-old's winning time of 38.90 in the 300 hurdles at April's Arcadia Invitational set another national prep record by more than a full second. She clocked the fastest 400-meter relay split in high school history (49.85) at NBNO this past weekend, and during the indoor season she broke national records in both the 300 and 400-meter races.    

A volunteer for the Central Jersey Chapter of HOPE Worldwide, McLaughlin has participated in multiple community service projects, including distributing fire safety and disaster relief information on behalf of the American Red Cross. She has also served as a soup kitchen staffer and as part of a teen outreach project in association with her church community, and has donated her time to Hurricane Sandy recovery efforts.

McLaughlin has maintained a 3.46 GPA in the classroom.

"At this point in her young career, Sydney McLaughlin captures imaginations in a way that is rare," said Doug Binder, DyeStat.com Editor-in-Chief. "She seems to have all the tools and traits that could lead to her becoming the face of USA Track and Field in years to come. She is on her way to becoming a global star in the sport, a Sanya Richards- or Allyson Felix-type star."

She has signed a National Letter of Intent to compete on an athletic scholarship at the University of Kentucky this fall.

"Sydney is an exceptional student-athlete who has earned recognition as the nation's best high school girls track & field athlete while also excelling in the classroom and making a difference in her community," said Gatorade Senior Vice President and General Manager Brett O'Brien. "Sydney's statistics on the track speak for themselves, but even more impressive is the impact she has had on her teammates and the example she sets for younger student-athletes. Sydney represents everything we look to celebrate in a Gatorade Player of the Year recipient."

As a part of Gatorade's cause marketing platform "Play it Forward," McLaughlin also has the opportunity to award a $1,000 grant to a local or national youth sports organization of her choosing. She is also eligible to win one of twelve $10,000 spotlight grants for her organization of choice, which will be announced throughout the year. 

The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field, and awards one National Player of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by the Gatorade high school sports leadership team in partnership with the Gatorade Player of the Year Selection Committee, which work with top sport-specific experts and a media advisory board of accomplished, veteran prep sports journalists to determine the state winners in each sport.

Former notable Gatorade National Players of the Year include:

• Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Peyton Manning
• 2015 NBA first overall pick Karl-Anthony Towns
• Three-time WNBA champion Maya Moore
• Seven-time track & field Olympic medalist Allyson Felix
• Three-time beach volleyball gold medalist Kerri Walsh
• Three-time Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw

For more information on the Gatorade Player of the Year program, including nomination information, a complete list of former winners, and future announcement dates, visit the Gatorade Player of the Year Web site at http://www.gatorade.com/poy, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GatoradePOY or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/Gatorade.

SOURCE The Gatorade Company

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