Contact: Sam Fretto, Sports Information Graduate Assistant, sjfretto@noctrl.edu
 
INDIANAPOLIS (Jan. 15, 2025)- North Central College cross country and track and field All-American competitor Emerald Svienty has been awarded the NCAA Division III LGBTQ Student-Athlete of the Year award for the 2023-24 athletic season. The award was presented to Svienty Wednesday at the NCAA Convention held in Indianapolis.

Svienty is a four-time All-American and six-time College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) individual champion. They earned All-America honors in 2023 in the indoor and outdoor 5,000-meter events, then placed third in the 2023 Midwest Regional Cross Country Championship as the Cardinals won the regional title and an automatic bid to the national finals. Svienty also placed third at the national championship, leading North Central to a third-place showing.

In 2024, Svienty won the CCIW individual cross country championship and again placed third in the regional finals before a 10th-place showing at the national championship as the Cardinals placed seventh. They have won CCIW individual titles on the track at 3,000, 5,000 and 10,000 meters. In an interview with the NCAA, Svienty, who identifies as transgender, took us on their journey.

"This season I was very lucky to change my name on my team and a lot of other aspects in my life." Svienty said, "It was a very important thing to me and a very important step in being a trans athlete."
North Central's support means a lot to Svienty, who expresses gratitude for everyone involved in supporting them.

"I've felt very lucky in the kind of situation I've been in and the program I've been in." Svienty continued, "The support I've gotten from so many people, whether it's on the team, people in the athletic department, or on the training staff. I think things are moving in a very good direction."

Svienty hopes to inspire change in the world: "I'm more than just a runner. I'm more than just an athlete, and if I could only be an athlete, I wouldn't feel complete."

"The world is better and more beautiful with us in it, and I think every queer athlete should continue being themselves. There is a home for you somewhere in the world of athletics."

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