Muhammed snags crown as New York’s Best

Queens’ finest is New York State’s best, at least according to Gatorade. The sports drink, in tandem with Rise magazine, presented Cardozo junior Dalilah Muhammad as the 2006-07 New York girls track & field Athlete of the Year. With the award, Muhammad is also a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Girls Track & Field Athlete of the Year award to be announced later this month.
The hurdler/jumper/middle distance runner, who will represent the United States at the IAAF World Youth Championships in the Czech Republic in July, won the New York State Federation Division 1 title in the high jump and 400-meter hurdles after scoring the most individual points at the PSAL championships. Her times in the two events ranked No. 4 and No. 22 in the nation, respectively.
“Initially, we were like ‘wow, she won; but when we absorbed the whole thing and when we looked at all she’s achieved, it was well deserved,” Cardozo Coach Gail Emmanuel said.
She is not just a star runner, though. Muhammad has maintained a B average in the classroom and is a fixture in the school’s dance recitals, well versed in ballet, hip-hop and lyrical styles. Muhammad also volunteers as a youth coach for her summer club track team, the New York Novas.
“Her attitude is amazing,” Emmanuel said. “She’s very coachable, highly multi-talented. Her work ethic and desire to excel make it easy for us to help her improve. She’s such a competitor: She’s qualified in eight events since her freshman year at the city championships, which is very rare indeed.”
- Zachary Braziller