Akwu Wins Double At Sunbelt Outdoor

…Gets Trackman Of The Year Award

Nigeria and Middle Tennessee sprinter Noah Awku over the weekend won both the 200 and 400meter dashes on the final day of the 2011 Sun Belt Outdoor Championships at Dean A. Hayes Track and Soccer Stadium, Tennessee.

The men's team took sixth in the competition, while the women tied for fourth.

Akwu ran respective times of 21.16 and 47.93 to take the duel victories. He was awarded Sun Belt co-Trackman of the Year for his accomplishments.

Teammate Steven Palmer was second behind Akwu in the 400 with a time of 48.09.

According to report, If not for Noah Akwu and a surprising last burst, MTSU's track & field teams would have gone winless on the final day of the Sun Belt Championships.

Akwu's 21.16-second sprint in the 200 edged South Alabama's Anton Graphenreed (21.24) to second position.  

It would be recalled that Noah Akwu was in February named track athlete of the week by the US league office. Akwu received the recognition for his performances at the Rod McCravy Memorial in Lexington, Kentucky and also placed fifth (fourth collegiately) in the 400 meters at the Rod McCravy Memorial, running 47.49, the fastest time in the Sun Belt Conference this season giving him the 28th fastest in the NCAA this season.

In March also, Noah Akwu was crowned National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) All-American in the 200-meter dash for his performance at the 2011 NCAA Indoor Track and Field National Championships. Akwu placed sixth in a final round time of 20.86 to earn the honor.

With the All-American title, Akwu becomes the second Middle Tennessee athlete to be named All-American in the 200-meter dash. Christian Nsiah was crowned such in 1996. He is also the first Blue Raider to win All-American in a track event since Orlando Reid in 2007 and first male indoor winner since Juan Walker in 2006.