PJ Ransford Awarded Big Ten Medal of Honor

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

The University of Michigan Athletic Department presented the Big Ten Medal of Honor to its 2017-18 recipients at its annual Student-Athlete Recognition Celebration on Monday evening in Ann Arbor, Mich. Graduate student PJ Ransford was one of the two recipients for the honor, along with grad student Eric Finn. The two won the award for their outstanding work in athletics and academics.

The Big Ten Medal of Honor is awarded to one male and one female student from the graduating class of each member institution who has demonstrated excellence on and off the field throughout their college career. The highest honor that a student competing in conference athletics can achieve in the Big Ten, the award was established in 1915 and was the first award in intercollegiate athletics to demonstrate support for the educational emphasis placed on athletics. During the past century, the Big Ten Medal of Honor has been awarded to nearly 1,400 honorees. These individuals have translated their campus experience into success in all walks of life.

Graduate student PJ Ransford, a native Pittsford, N.Y. was the men’s recipient of the award, from men’s swimming & diving. He becomes the 15th Medal of Honor recipient from the swimming and diving program and fourth in the last seven years.

A team captain in 2017-18, Ransford graduated in December with a degree in mechanical engineering and is working on his master’s in the same field. He has maintained a 4.0 GPA and received the NCAA Elite 90 Award for the second straight year. The Elite 90 Award is given to the student-athlete at the NCAA Championships with the highest GPA. He is a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-American.

In the pool, Ransford is a three-time All-American and has three honorable mention All-America citations. A three-time All-Big Ten selection, he was the 2016 Big Ten champion in the 1,650 freestyle and won bronze medals in the 500-yard freestyle and 1,650-yard freestyle at the 2018 Big Ten Championships. He is currently a member of the U.S. National Team and represented USA Swimming at the 2017 World University Games in Taiwan.

The Big Ten Medal of Honor was the first award in intercollegiate athletics to demonstrate support for the educational emphasis placed on athletics. It was acclaimed throughout the nation, and in particular by the NCAA “as one of the significant gestures yet made in college sports.” The Big Ten Medal of Honor was expanded in 1982 to include one female student-athlete from each institution.

The above press release courtesy of the Big Ten Conference

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My Beach Things

6 years ago

Nice, I like it!