Isaac Green Selected As Gatorade Colorado Track And Field Athlete Of The Year


Isaac Green spearheaded, among other things, the Monarch domination of the distance events at State.


CHICAGO (June 22, 2017) - In its 32nd year of honoring the nation's best high school athletes, The Gatorade Company, today announced Isaac Green of Monarch High School as its 2016-17 Gatorade Colorado Boys Track & Field Athlete of the Year. Green is the first Gatorade Colorado Boys Track & Field Athlete of the Year to be chosen from Monarch High School.

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 Green as Colorado's best high school boys track & field athlete. Now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Boys Track & Field Athlete of the Year award to be announced in June, Green joins an elite alumni association of state track & field awardwinners, including Lolo Jones (1997-98, Roosevelt High School, Iowa), Allyson Felix (2002-03, Los Angeles Baptist High School, Calif.), Robert Griffin III (2006-07, Copperas Cove High School, Texas), Grant Fisher (2013-14 & 2014- 15, Grand Blanc High School, Mich.) and Candace Hill (2014-15, Rockdale County High School, Ga.).

The 6-foot-1, 175-pound senior won three individual state championships at the Class 5A state meet this past season, leading the Coyotes to second place as a team. Green swept the 800-meter run (1:52.92), the 1600-meter run (4:21.98) and the 3200-meter run (9:26.39). Also a two-time cross country state champion, he finished fourth in the adidas Dream Mile this spring.

Green has volunteered as a peer mentor for special education students in his school. "Isaac is an outstanding athlete and an outstanding young man," said Monarch High School coach Kent Rieder. "His accomplishments speak for themselves, in track and cross country, but for him, the team has always come first, over his individual ambitions."

Green has maintained a 3.68 GPA in the classroom. He has signed a National Letter of Intent to compete on an athletic scholarship at the University of Washington this fall.

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 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.

Green joins recent Gatorade Colorado Boys Track & Field Athletes of the Year Caleb Ojennes (2015-16, Palmer Ridge High School), Blake Yount (2014-15, Smoky Hill High School), Kevin McClanahan (2013-14, Erie High School), Connor Turnage (2012-13, Highlands Ranch High School), Raymond Bozmans (2011-12, Fort Collins High School), Connor Winter (2010-11, Arapahoe High School), Trevor Brown (2009-10, Wasson High School), Mason Finley (2008-09 & 2007-08, Buena Vista High School), and Jacob J.T. Scheuerman (2006-07, Littleton High School) among the state's list of former award winners.

As a Gatorade Player of the Year, Isaac will be able to select a national or local youth sports organization to receive a grant as part of the Gatorade Play It Forward program. Every Gatorade Player of the Year state winner receives a $1,000 grant to donate and will have the opportunity to enter for an additional $10,000 spotlight grant by writing a brief essay explaining why their selected organization deserves additional support. 12 spotlight grants - one for each sport - will be announced throughout the year.

To keep up to date on the latest happenings, become a fan of Gatorade Player of the Year on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. For more on the Gatorade Player of the Year program, including nomination information, a complete list of past winners and the announcement of the Gatorade National Player of the Year, visit www.gatorade.com/poy.