Youth
2026 NYRR Youth Awards Night

2026 NYRR Youth Awards Night

Based on their outstanding 2025 performances, runners are nominated for awards to be presented at NYRR Youth Awards Night.* These runners’ incredible achievements will be celebrated as we honor the best of the New York City youth running community.

Below are the lists of nominees for age-group awards from the 2025 NYRR club points season, along with information about several special award categories.

*This is an invite-only event

Runner of the Year (Age-Group Award) Nominees (Scroll Horizontally to View All Nominees)

Ages 1-14
Boys		Girls		Nonbinary
Name	Club Team	Name	Club Team	Name	Club Team
Borut Junior Vojnic	-	Abigail Cochran	-	-	-
Xavier Khanal	Asian Trail Mix	Livia Cagney	-	-	-
Elijah Keshodkar	-	Amelia Lo Cascio	-	-	-
-	-	Olivia Schroeder	City Park Foundation	-	-
-	-	Eliza Mahoney	-	-	-
-	-	Ivy Mo	Misty Mountain Runners	-	-

Ages 15-19
Boys		Girls		Nonbinary
Name	Club Team	Name	Club Team	Name	Club Team
Alex Califano	Staten Island AC	Tatiana O'Neal	361	-	-
Theo Trane	-	Melanie Liu	-	-	-
Daniel Menendez	Queens Distance Runners	Karen Escamilla	Run for the Future Alumni	-	-
Oscar Soudee	-	Emma Aponte	-	-	-
-	-	Kylie Croce	-	-	-

Presented based on the following criteria and eligibility rules:

Membership: Runners must be a member of NYRR for at least six months of the calendar year, including at the time of nomination.

Qualifying Races: Within the calendar year, runners must complete at least six fully scored NYRR races across a range of distances.

Age Group: A runner who changes age groups during the year will be considered for nomination in the age group in which they belonged for the majority of the year.

Awards Committee: The Awards Committee is comprised of NYRR staff members and representatives from the local running community. The 45th Annual NYRR Club Night awards committee members are Anil Bhambhani, Tom Kelley, Gordon Bakoulis, Ben Grundstein, Sofia Camacho, Erica Stanley-Dottin, Logan Yu, Roman Fedosieiev, James Gusmer, and Will Ngo.

Selection Process: For each age category, runners are ranked based on their best performances for the year. These rankings, through the top 20 in each age group, are reviewed by the awards committee with special consideration made for head-to-head competition and performances at a range of distances.

Special Award Categories

Rising New York Road Runners Runner of the Year

Nominees:

Souleymane Bamba – Boy

Samuel Leung – Boy

Robert Heath – Boy

Christie Dorcenay – Girl

Bergeline Augustin – Girl

Oumou Diallo – Girl

Gabriela Romero – Nonbinary

Presented based on the following criteria and eligibility rules:

Membership: Runners must be part of a Rising NYRR program site.

Qualifying Races: Within the calendar year, runners must participate in at least one of the events within the Rising NYRR program in-person event calendar.

Awards Committee: The awards committee is comprised of Rising NYRR program staff.

Selection Process: Our Rising NYRR program coaches submit written nominations for runners within their program. Then, Rising NYRR program staff review these nominations and select winners for each category. Rising NYRR program staff select a runner for each category, who is a great team player and has had an impact in their site’s program. Their coaches attest to their excellent character and ability to motivate others to run.

Rising New York Road Runners Wheelchair Racing Athlete of the Year

Nominees:

Logan Passe

Henry Gama

Penelope Fernandez

Presented based on the following criteria and eligibility rules:

Membership: Athletes must be a member of the Rising New York Road Runners Wheelchair Training Program for at least one full calendar year.

Qualifying Events: During the fall or spring season, athletes must participate in at least half of the in-person Rising NYRR Wheelchair Training Program regular season practices, and one Rising NYRR youth event with the Rising NYRR Wheelchair Training Program.

Awards Committee: The awards committee is comprised of Rising New York Road Runners Wheelchair Training Program staff and coaches, including Arianna Moliere, Stephanie Herrick, and Anthony Russo.

Selection Process: The Rising NYRR Wheelchair Racing Athlete of the Year, in addition to satisfying the qualifying events requirement, consistently embodies the qualities of a good teammate by making others feel included on the team, encouraging their teammates to do their best, demonstrating a willingness to try new things at practices and/or Rising NYRR events, and consistently giving their best effort.

Outstanding Rising New York Road Runners Youth Ambassador of the Year

Nominees:

Matthew Ayala – Boy

Kai Kwee-Hallem – Boy

Jayden Cisneros – Boy

Sofia Romero – Girl

Bella Zambrano – Girl

Grace Fine – Girl

Presented based on the following criteria and eligibility rules:

Membership: Ambassadors must be an active participant in the program for the entire school year.

Qualifying Events: Rising NYRR youth races and other physical activities – improving quality of life through physical activities. Must have participated in at least three races.

Rising NYRR Youth Ambassador Events/Opportunities: Developing personal public speaking skills and confidence through various speaking opportunities. Must have participated in at least three opportunities.

Extra Curriculum or Community Service Activities: Using their time to serve others and their community. Building leadership skills.

Awards Committee: Comprised of the Community Impact Team and the instructor of the program.

Selection Process: The Rising NYRR Youth Ambassador of the Year, in addition to satisfying the qualifying events requirement, the ambassador will also demonstrate how they have used their voice and leadership skills to serve others and their community.

Rising New York Road Runners Honor Award

Winner

TBD

Presented based on the following criteria and eligibility rules:

This award is presented to individuals who have dedicated their lives to the sport of running by supporting NYRR’s youth programs and events and have inspired youth to develop a lasting positive impact on society.