EUGENE, Ore. – In recognition of their works in the classroom, Jaida Ross and Klaudia Kazimierska have earned spots on the 2023-24 College Sports Communications (CSC) Academic All-America Team. Ross is a member of the first team with Kazimierska getting voted to the second team.
With Tuesday’s announcement, Ross and Kazimierska become the 40th and 41st Academic All-Americans in program history. Oregon cross country and track and field has now had at least one all-academic pick in 23 of the past 25 seasons with multiple selections in 15 of those years.
Ross carries a 4.00 cumulative GPA in her prevention science grad studies. During a historic season, Ross reset the collegiate record twice in the shot put and won the 2024 NCAA title. The Medford, Ore., native became the first collegian and just the seventh American woman to surpass 20 meters in the event with a 20.01m/65-7.75 measure at the NCAA West Preliminary (May 23) in Fayetteville, Ark.
The Medford, Ore., native first set the collegiate record with a toss of 19.71m/64-8 at the Triton Invite in early April, a mark she tied three weeks later at the Desert Heat Classic. Including a 19.57m/64-2.5 effort at the NCAA Championships, Ross owns four of the top five measures in collegiate history.
Ross’ standout campaign also featured a national runner-up finish at the NCAA Indoor Championships in Boston and a sweep of the shot put and discus titles at the Pac-12 Championships in Boulder, Colo.
The Bowerman finalist most recently qualified for the 2024 Olympics with a third-place finish at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Eugene. Ross finished with a day’s best of 19.60m/64-3.75, one of four measures past 19 meters.
Kazimierska, a mathematics major with a 3.76 GPA, capped her collegiate season with a bronze showing at the NCAA Championships at 1500 meters. She improved one spot from last year’s fourth-place finish. During the semifinal round, she posted a then-lifetime best of 4:06.92 to advance.
The UO sophomore scored twice at the Pac-12 Championships, getting points in the 800 and 1500 which helped the Women of Oregon win the team title for a third-consecutive season.
During the indoor season, Kazimierska broke the school record in the mile with her 4:30.33 performance at the Eagle Elite meet in Boston and went on to finish seventh at the NCAA Championships. Two weeks prior, she teamed with Ella Clayton, Ella Nelson and Maddy Elmore to run a DMR time of 10:47.50 at the Razorback Invitational. That time broke the school record and currently sits sixth in collegiate history.
Kazimierska rolled right into the summer European tour to clock a school-record time of 4:01.89 in the 1500 meters at the World Athletics Continental Tour stop in Poland. With the Olympic standard in her grasp, she went on to win the Polish Championships in the event and secure her spot in Paris.
Overall, the UO athletic department is up to six Academic All-Americans this season. Including Ross and Kazimierska, the list also features Bucky Irving (football), Bo Nix (football), Cami Wilson (acrobatics and tumbling, via the NCATA) and Vallery Wong (softball). The men’s cross country/track and field and both at-large teams will be announced at a later date.
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