Olympic gold medalist Henry Cejudo among Colorado Athletes of the Year

Denver, Colo. (Jan. 6, 2009) - Olympic gold medal winners Henry Cejudo and Carmelo Anthony, along with NCAA champions Jenny Barringer and John Buchar, headline a list of six individuals that will be honored as the 2008 "Centennial" State Athletes-of-the-Year at the 2009 Colorado Sports Hall of Fame April 14 banquet at the Denver Marriott City Center Hotel.

The Selection Committee of the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame picked Anthony as the Professional Athlete-of-the-Year while Cejudo was honored as the Athlete-of-the-Year after both earned gold medals at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games in basketball and freestyle wrestling, respectively.

Barringer, who also competed at the Summer Games in the Chinese capital, and Buchar captured NCAA championships during the first half of 2008 in track and skiing, respectively, as Colorado colleges produced four title winning teams with six individuals corralling crowns along with two relay foursomes.

Other selections here Monday were Parker Orms (Wheat Ridge) and Becca Huffer (Littleton) as the High School Male and Female Athletes-of-the-Year, respectively. Also to be honored at the April 14 ceremonies will be Jason Regier, the 2008 Disabled Athlete Recognition Award winner.

Monday's AOY selections will be honored at the April 14 banquet along with the newest Colorado Sports Hall of Fame inductees of Ralph Backstrom, Laurice "Lo" Hunter, Sonny Lubick, Jerry McMorris, Lt. Colo. John Mosley and Rod Smith. The newest members of the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame were selected this past October. Tickets for the banquet are $150 each and are available by contacting the CSHOF office at Invesco Field at Mile High.

A two-time Colorado state high school champion at Coronado in Colorado Springs, Cejudo captured the gold medal in the 55kg freestyle division in Beijing. Cejudo gave the U.S. its first Olympic gold medal in freestyle wrestling in 16 years with a win over Japan's Tomohiro Matsunaga in the 55-kilogram (121 pounds) final. Cejudo also defeated wrestlers from Bulgaria, Georgia and Azerbaijan before scoring a 5-2 win over Matsunaga.

Before being part of the United States' gold medal team in Beijing, Anthony appeared in 77 games for the Nuggets during the 2007-2008 season where he averaged 25.7 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 3.4 assist per game while leading Denver to the playoffs. He was also a starting forward in the 2008 NBA All-Star Game where Anthony scored 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds in 22 minutes of action.

In Beijing, Anthony averaged 11.5 points and 4.3 rebounds in 19.1 minutes a game as he earned his second Olympic medal after being on the 2004 bronze medal team in Athens. He scored a team-high 21 points versus Argentina in the semifinal game and connected on all 13 of his free-throw attempts.

Barringer won her second NCAA title at the 2008 NCAA Championships when she captured the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase in a collegiate record 9 minutes, 29.20 seconds. It is the fastest time ever run on American soil and the second fastest time ever run by an American woman. She lowered her own American record in the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games with a 9:22.26 to place ninth.

Buchar swept the slalom and giant slalom individual titles at the 2008 NCAA Skiing Championships. On the final day competition, DU was in second place prior to Buchar's second run. As the final Pioneer to compete, Buchar's victory clinched both his second individual title and Denver's record 19th NCAA Team Championship. Buchar became only the second skier in DU history and fourth overall to claim both individual national titles at NCAA Championships. Buchar won five of 11 races in 2008and was named the 2007-08 DU Male Athlete of the Year Award.

Before competing at Notre Dame this fall where she had the team's second best average (75.07), Huffer's success in the 2008 calendar year began in Colorado at the interscholastic level. She shot a five-under par 139 to win the Colorado State Championship by a record 13 strokes. She also won the Colorado Public Links Qualifier by three shots, carding a 73. In the 2008 Colorado Women's Open, Huffer was the low amateur, and finished second overall, with a 221 (75-71-74).

Orms led Wheat Ridge to the Class 4A title where the Farmers defeated Greeley West 35-31 for the school's seventh-straight win in a state championship game. In the finale, Orms rushed for 280 yards on 38 carries with five touchdowns, including a 56-run to secure the win for Wheat Ridge. Orms led 4A in rushing this season with 2,813 yards and 39 touchdowns.

Regier, who was a member of the United States' gold medal men's wheelchair ruby team at the Beijing 2008 Paralympics, suffered a spinal cord injury in 2006 while driving back for his final semester of college. He was also named the U. S. Quad Rugby Association's 2008 athlete of the year.

The CSHOF Selection Committee also awarded 2008 citations to the following:

• Colorado Rockies pitcher Aaron Cook
• Colorado Nugget coach George Karl
• Cyclists Dave Wiens, six-time winner of the Leadville 100 mountain bike endurance
• Denver Bronco coach Mike Shanahan
• Denver East boy's basketball coach Rudy Carey
• Glendale Rugby at Infinity Park
• Philadelphia Phillie pitcher Brad Lidge
• Skeleton racer Katie Uhlaender
• World championship skier Lindsey Vonn
• Wrestler Tyler Graff, a four-time state champion at Loveland High School

NOTE: Tickets for the banquet are $150 each and are available by contacting the CSHOF office at Invesco Field at Mile High or by telephoning 720/258-3535. The 2009 Colorado Sports Hall of Fame Induction and Awards Banquet is Tuesday, April 14, 2009, at Denver Marriott City Center Hotel.

Author: Gary Abbott

Organization: USA Wrestling

Phone: 719-598-8181