KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Fort Hays State senior distance runner Robbie Schmidt has been named MIAA Co-Outdoor Track Athlete of the Week, announced Tuesday by the league office. This is the first weekly award given out by the MIAA during the 2022 outdoor season.
Schmidt broke a 53-year-old school record in the 5,000m run at the Texas Relays last Thursday (March 24). The Topeka, Kan. native shaved nearly 40 seconds off his PR, completing the race in 14:05.87. That time was good for ninth place, better than seven Division I runners. He improved the school record by close to 15 seconds, a mark that had been held by Tiger Sports Hall of Famer and Olympian Larbi Oukada since 1969 (14:20.44). To date it is the second-best time in Division II this season and is a DII provisional performance.
This is Schmidt's second MIAA weekly award, joining a cross country athlete of the week honor he received last fall.