The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
2020 Top Track and Field Performers: Elena Bruckner
06.30.2020 | Track & Field / Cross Country
The senior thrower won her first Big 12 title and was an All-American for the second time in her career.
AUSTIN, Texas – Texas Track and Field senior thrower Elena Bruckner capped her collegiate indoor career with an impressive final season, earning her second USTFCCCA All-America honor and winning her first individual Big 12 shot put title. Bruckner also solidified herself as the school's best weight thrower in school history.
Bruckner, a San Jose, Calif. native, competed in four meets for the Longhorns, throwing the shot put and weight in each of those outings. She opened at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Collegiate Invitational in Albuquerque, N.M. in late January, winning the shot put and placing third in the weight throw. She cleared 16.32m/53-6.5 to win the shot put, and began her year with a 17.68m/58-0.25 effort in the weight throw.
In her next outing, Bruckner took fifth and sixth in the shot put and weight throw, respectively, at the Razorback Invitational. Her mark improved in the weight throw, as she cleared 18.99m/62-3.75 on her third attempt. The senior got back above the 16-meter mark (16.25m/53-4.25) at the Tiger Paw Invitational on Valentine's Day weekend, helping her place second out on the east coast.
At the Big 12 Indoor Championships, Bruckner opened on Friday by placing fifth in the weight throw. She threw the weight 19.32m/63-4.75, the second-best individual performance in UT history. Bruckner also holds the school record, a mark she set at the Big 12 meet in 2019 (19.60m/64-3.75). In Saturday's shot put competition, Bruckner took her performance to the next level, tossing the orb a lifetime-best 16.82m/55-2.25 to win her first individual conference title.
Bruckner's shot put victory made her the first UT woman to win a Big 12 shot put title, either indoors or outdoors, since three-time Olympian Michelle Carter in 2007. Her mark, which was the farthest throw by a Big 12 competitor this year, improved Bruckner's standing as the fifth-best women's shot put performer in Texas history. Bruckner's mark also secured her a spot in the field at the NCAA Indoor Championships and All-America recognition from the USTFCCCA in the pandemic-shortened season.
