Feb. 16, 2009
IOWA CITY, IA — Hawkeye senior thrower John Hickey has been named Big Ten Men’s Field Athlete of the Week following a school record-setting toss in the shot put this past weekend.
Hickey shot putted a booming 63 feet (19.20m) at this past weekend’s Iowa State Classic, barely missing the NCAA automatic qualifying mark of 19.30 meters. However, Hickey provisionally qualified for the fourth time this season and his throw ranks first in the Big Ten and fourth in the nation, making a trip to the NCAA Championships even more likely. Also, Hickey’s toss is a new University of Iowa indoor record, breaking the previous record of 62-10 1/2 set by Jeremy Allen in 2001. This is Hickey’s first Indoor Weekly Field Athlete award. Hickey was one of four Hawkeyes to meet the NCAA provisional qualifying mark in a productive weekend for Iowa that saw three champions and two school records.
The Hawkeyes’ next competition will be Feb. 20 when they host the co-ed Iowa Invite at 4 p.m. at the University of Iowa Recreation Building. Competing teams include Iowa, Bradley, Coe, Simpson, Augustana and North Central College. Admission to the event is free.