June 2, 2006

COLUMBIA, SC – With both capturing individual regional titles and leading their team to victories in their respective relays as the anchor leg, South Carolina sophomores Jason Richardson and Shalonda Solomon have been named the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches (USTFCCCA) Southeast District Athlete of the Year.

In addition to their work on the track, Solomon and Richardson are also Dean’s List students. Both were also named to the CoSIDA Academic District All-American list on Thursday.

The district winners will be honored on Monday, June 5 in Sacramento with the National Athlete of the Year (track athlete and field athlete) to be named on Tuesday, June 13 after the NCAA Championships June 7-10.

Bios on Richardson and Solomon follow.

Southeast: Jason Richardson, South Carolina. Richardson finished second in the 110-meter high hurdles and 400 hurdles at the Southeastern Conference championships and won the highs at the East Regional meet. His best times this season are 13.36 and 49.90. He also ran the anchor leg (45.6) of USC’s region-winning 4x400m relay.

Southeast: Shalonda Solomon, South Carolina. The South Carolina sophomore shares the top collegiate time in the 200 meters (22.30) and has the second-fastest mark in the 100 (11.07). The NCAA indoor champion in the 200, Solomon won both sprints at the East Regionals and anchors South Carolina’s fourth-seeded 4×100 relay team. She is also expected to run a leg of USC’s 4x400m relay.