NEW ORLEANS – Which of the three Men’s Finalists and three Women’s Finalists do you think should win collegiate track & field’s highest individual honor, The Bowerman Trophy?

Starting today, track & field fans around the world will be able to make their opinions known as the annual fan vote component of The Bowerman selection process is officially open at THEBOWERMAN.ORG.

Fans will choose between Edward Cheserek of Oregon, Lawi Lalang of Arizona and Deon Lendore of Texas A&M for the men’s trophy, and Sharika Nelvis of Arkansas State, Courtney Okolo of Texas and Laura Roesler of Oregon for the women’s trophy.

More information on each Finalist can be found by clicking their names in the above paragraph.

Once fans cast their vote, they can spread the word about their favorite Finalists and encourage their friends to vote by sharing the link to TheBowerman.org, mentioning @TheBowerman on Twitter and/or “The Bowerman” on Facebook, and using the hashtags #VoteCheserek, #VoteLalang, #VoteLendore, #VoteNelvis, #VoteOkolo or#VoteRoesler. Posts containing these hashtags will not count in the overall vote total.

More than just bragging rights are at stake in the fan vote. The results will count in the overall voting process as one vote alongside those of the nation’s top track & field media members, statisticians, administrators and coaches.

When placing votes, fans should only consider performances that occurred from the beginning of the indoor season through the end of the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Any performance that occurred during that timeframe — even if it wasn’t a purely collegiate competition — can be counted. Anything before that time (cross country) or after (USA Championships, select Diamond League meetings, etc.) should not factor into the decision.

Online fan voting started in 2009 with more than 200,000 votes having been cast since, and more than 25,000 votes have been cast each year. Last year saw more than 36,000 votes cast as Julian Wruck of UCLA and Kori Carter of Stanford earned the nods from the fans.

Paper balloting by The Bowerman Advisory Board, past winners, selected media personnel, statisticians, and collegiate administrators, is also underway until August 12. An independent accounting firm will collect, tabulate, and certify final results and will keep the result secret until the envelope is opened in December.

The award, in its sixth year of existence, will be presented in a ceremony at the USTFCCCA Convention on December 17 at the JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge in Phoenix, Ariz.

WINNER SELECTION PROCESS

The Bowerman Voters will receive ballots listing each of the finalists and must rank them by first, second and third choice. First-place votes will receive three points, second place will notch two, and third will receive one point. The finalist with the highest point total will be declared the winner.

The Bowerman Voters consist of:

• The Bowerman Advisory Board (10 members)
• Select media personnel, statisticians, and collegiate administrators
• Galen Rupp, 2009 men’s winner of The Bowerman
• Ashton Eaton, 2010 men’s winner of The Bowerman
• Ngoni Makusha, 2011 men’s winner of The Bowerman
• Cam Levins, 2012 men’s winner of The Bowerman
• Derek Drouin, 2013 men’s winner of The Bowerman
• Jenny (Barringer) Simpson, 2009 women’s winner of The Bowerman
• Queen Harrison, 2010 women’s winner of The Bowerman
• Jessica Beard, 2011 women’s winner of The Bowerman
• Kimberlyn Duncan, 2012 women’s winner of The Bowerman
• Brianna Rollins, 2013 women’s winner of The Bowerman
• Online voting by the public will constitute one collective vote (ranking of choices will be made by order of total single votes)
• Online voting by USTFCCCA members will constitute one collective vote (ranking of choices will be made by order of total single votes)

Paper balloting will conclude in the coming weeks while online voting will begin on Monday, July 28 and will last until Tuesday, August 12. An independent accounting firm will collect, tabulate, and certify final results and will keep the result secret until the envelope is opened December 17 at The Bowerman Trophy Award Show.