Martina Schultze | Sophomore | Uhingen, Germany
In many ways, choosing Martina Schultze as the women’s track and field athlete of the year was the easiest task among all of the honorees by this magazine. After all, Schultze dominated in her event, both during the indoor and outdoor season.
Though she came up a little short of winning a national championship, Schultze finished in eighth place in the pole vault to earn first-team All-America honors at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Her best vault was 14 feet, 1.25 inches (4.30 meters). During the indoor season, she finished third at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships with a vault of 14 feet, 5.25 inches (4.40 meters).
Schultze also won two ACC championships in the pole vault this year, claiming gold at both the ACC Indoor Track and Field Championships held at Rector Field House and the ACC Outdoor Track and Field Championships held in Raleigh, N.C. During the indoor season, she won gold at the ACC meet with a vault of 14 feet, 7.25 inches (4.45 meters), setting an ACC Championship meet record. During the ACC’s outdoor event, she won with a vault of 13 feet, 5.25 inches (4.10 meters).
She broke her own school record three times over the course of the outdoor season, with the last time coming on her vault of 14 feet. 4 inches (4.37 meters) at the Roanoke/Virginia Tech Twilight meet in Roanoke, Va.
