Jasmine Moore Named 2018-19 Gatorade® National Girls Track And Field Player Of The Year

MANSFIELD, Texas, June 27, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- In its 34^th year of honoring the nation's most elite high school athletes, The Gatorade Company today announced Jasmine Moore of Lake Ridge High School in Mansfield, Texas as the 2018-19 Gatorade National Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year. Moore won the award for her accomplishments on and off the field, joining a group of Gatorade National Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year awardees that have gone on to have incredible success- they've produced a combined 73 gold medals and 26 National Championships.

Moore was surprised with the trophy at her school surrounded by teammates, friends, family and coaches. Check out a video of the announcement here.

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 Moore as the nation's best high school girls track and field athlete. A national advisory panel comprised of sport-specific experts and sports journalists helped select Moore from nearly 490,000 high school girls track and field athletes nationwide. Moore is now a finalist for the most prestigious award in high school sports, the Gatorade Female High School Athlete of the Year award, which is announced at a special ceremony prior to The ESPY Awards in July.

"Over the course of the last four years, Jasmine Moore stayed at or near the top of high school girls triple jumping and got within two inches of breaking the national record," says Doug Binder, Dyestat.com Editor-in-Chief. "She'll leave high school with personal-best marks in both the triple and long jumps that are comparable to Olympian and current American record-holder Keturah Orji, an indication that great things could be on the horizon for Jasmine at the University of Georgia and beyond. Her wind-legal leap of 44 feet, 10 inches is the best ever at a state meet and she concludes her career with five New Balance National titles (two outdoor, three indoor)."

The state's returning Gatorade Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year, Moore won the long jump and the triple jump at the Class 6A state meet this past season. The 5-foot-8 senior soared 44 feet, 10 inches in the triple jump, which ranked as the nation's No. 1 performance among prep competitors in 2019 at the time of her selection, No. 3 in U.S. prep history. Her winning leap of 20-7 inches in the long jump ranked third in the nation this year.     

Moore has volunteered locally on behalf of an animal shelter, playground restoration efforts and Mission Arlington. Moore has maintained an A average in the classroom. She has signed a National Letter of Intent to compete in track and field on scholarship at the University of Georgia beginning this fall.

"For the Gatorade Player of the Year award, we look for student-athletes that stand out in their sport, at school and in their community and Jasmine Moore does just that," said Gatorade Senior Vice President and General Manager Brett O'Brien. "Not only is Jasmine one of the best high school girls track and field athletes in the country, but she is also a model student in the classroom and someone to look up to in her community."

Through Gatorade's cause marketing platform "Play it Forward," Moore 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 submit an essay to win one of twelve $10,000 spotlight grants for the organization of choice, which will be announced throughout the year. 

Each year a selection committee evaluates the nation's top talent in the District of Columbia and all 50 states, choosing national winners 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. From the 12 national winners, one male and one female athlete are each named Gatorade High School Athlete of the Year.

Since the program's inception in 1985, Gatorade Player of the Year award recipients have won hundreds of professional and college championships, and many have also turned into pillars in their communities, becoming coaches, business owners and educators. Previous winners include a distinguished list of athletes, such as Peyton Manning, Abby Wambach, Karl-Anthony Towns, Derek Jeter and many other sports icons. To learn more about the Gatorade Player of the Year program, check out past winners or to nominate student-athletes, visit 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