Sutherland Named Bowerman Finalist
7/7/2025 4:00:00 PM | Women's Track & Field
NEW ORLEANS, La. -- Savannah Sutherland of the University of Michigan women's track and field team has been named one of three finalists for The Bowerman, as announced by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association on Monday (July 7).
The Bowerman is bestowed upon collegiate track and field's top male and female athletes for the year. Pamela Kosgei of New Mexico and Doris Lemngole of Alabama join Sutherland as the finalists for the award.
Sutherland was named to The Bowerman Watch List twice during the indoor season and is the first Wolverine in program history to be named a finalist for the award. She is also the first Big Ten women's finalist.
Sutherland captured her second national title in the 400-meter hurdles and her third straight top-two finish at the NCAA Championships on June 14. She ran a personal-best 52.46 seconds to finish 2.20 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher and set five records -- the NCAA record, the NCAA Championship meet record, the Big Ten record, the Michigan program record and Canadian national record. She earned first team All-America honors for her performance.
She is just the third Wolverine in program history to win multiple NCAA individual titles and was named the 2025 Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Women's Track Athlete of the Year, marking her third straight year earning the honor. Sutherland was also named USTFCCCA Women's Track Athlete of Year for the outdoor season, the first time in program history a Michigan athlete has earned the honor.
The senior is now just the second runner in NCAA history to break 53 seconds, with Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone setting the previous collegiate record of 52.75 in 2018. The time ranks No. 9 in the world on the all-time performance list and is the third-fastest time in the world this season.
Sutherland also ran the second leg of the 4x400-meter relay at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, clocking 50.71 for the fastest second leg and second-fastest split of the race. The relay squad finished 19th overall with a time of 3:33.75 to earn All-America honorable mention.
The Borden, Saskatchewan, native capped an impressive career in her final season for the Maize and Blue, winning her third straight Big Ten title in the 400-meter hurdles before setting the NCAA East First Round meet record (54.39) for the second consecutive year. She also helped set the program record in the 4x400-meter relay twice this season and earned a third-place finish at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships.
In the indoor season, Sutherland set a Canadian and program record with her time of 51.23 in the 400-meter dash at the NCAA DI Indoor Championships, placing fourth for her highest career finish at the NCAA Indoor Championships. She won the Big Ten 400-meter indoor title for the second straight year on March 1 after setting the program 200-meter record (23.26).
Sutherland was named Athlete of the Year for the Great Lakes Region after both the indoor and outdoor seasons.
She also represented Canada at the 2024 Paris Olympics, finishing seventh (53.88) in the 400-meter hurdle finals to become the first Canadian to reach the event finals since 1996, and finished sixth in the 4x400-meter relay (3:22.01).
Online voting for The Bowerman opens on Tuesday, July 8, at 4 p.m., and closes Thursday, July 10, at 2 p.m. The Bowerman 2025 winner will be announced on Dec. 18 at the Bowerman Presentation in Grapevine, Texas.
Players Mentioned
