The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
No. 24 Women's Track & Field’s Birdow named SEC Women’s Outdoor Newcomer Runner of the Year
06.08.2026 | Track & Field / Cross Country
SEC honors Texas hurdler after standout debut season on the Forty Acres.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. –
Texas Women's Track & Field standout Amelliah Birdow was named the SEC Women's Outdoor Newcomer Runner of the Year, the conference announced Monday. The honor was voted on by the league's head coaches.
Birdow has emerged as one of the nation's premier 400-meter hurdlers during her first season at Texas. A DeSoto, Texas native, she enters the NCAA Outdoor Championships ranked No. 3 nationally in the event and is coming off a dominant performance at the NCAA West Prelims, where she posted the fastest time in the field at 54.95 to win secure her place in the national meet.
The junior collected All-SEC honors after earning a bronze-medal finish in the 400-meter hurdles at the SEC Outdoor Championships with a personal-best 54.79, moving her to No. 3 on the Texas all-time performer list with the ninth-fastest time in program history. Birdow secured a pair of Texas Relays titles, placing first in the 400mH with a then-personal-best time of 55.37 and helped the Longhorns win the Sanya Richards-Ross 4x400-meter relay in 3:27.74. In her first season as a Longhorn, she has registered five of the top-21 performances in UT history.
Birdow and the Longhorns will compete at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships June 10-13 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.
