IRVING, Texas – For the second time in the 2023-24 season and first in the outdoor season, UTSA performers dominated the weekly American Athletic Conference awards. Ida Breigan, Brice Chabot and Christiaan Le Roux were each named AAC Athlete of the Week in their specific areas of expertise.
Taking up the long jump at the Beach Invitational in Long Beach, Frederikstad, Norway freshman Breigan has picked up right where she left off in the indoor season, when she collected the UTSA, American Athletic Conference and Norwegian National Indoor Record - then finished 6th at the NCAA Indoors as a first-team All-American. This weekend’s performance allowed her to take possession of the UTSA outdoor long jump record at 6.74m (22-1.5), winning the event and snapping a standard that has stood since All-American Tameka Roberts set the mark in 1994. For the effort, Breigan edged out Illinois' Tacoria Humphrey for the nation's top-ranked measurement in the women's long jump and was named the AAC Women’s Field Athlete of the Week. This is her third weekly award and first in the outdoor season.
In the men’s 100-meter at the Beach Invite, Smithville, Texas junior Chabot became only the second Roadrunner to breach the 10-second barrier in program history, earning a photo finish victory in 9.99 seconds in the 100m, jumping up to No. 2 in the NCAA national standings. The UTSA record and the only other school sub-10 was set by former NFL cornerback Teddy Williams at the 2009 UTEP Invitational. This is Chabot’s first honor of the season, receiving AAC Men’s Track Athlete of the Week laurels.
Rounding out the trio, Le Roux leapt 7.80m (25-7.25) on his first long jump pass to capture the top collegiate finish and second overall. The Roodepoort, South Africa junior shot to number two in the AAC men’s long jump rankings, while also rising to fourth on the UTSA all-time performers list and into a tie for the 18th-best jump in the nation this season. Named AAC Men’s Field Athlete of the Week, Le Roux collects his first honor of the season.
With all three helping raise UTSA’s profile at the national level, the Roadrunners’ long jump squad moved up to No. 2 in the nation in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) event squad rankings. Men’s Triple jump debuted at No. 2 this week. Led by Breigan’s national No. 1, the women moved up to No. 49 in the national team rankings.
Up next, the Roadrunners will see some big-time in-state meets as time ticks down until the American Athletic Conference Outdoor Championships at Park West, May 10-12. In the interim, UTSA travels next week to Texas A&M’s Alumni Muster on April 20, then wraps the regular season back in Austin at the Texas Invitational on April 27.
-UTSA-