FAIRFAX, Va. – George Mason men's track and field student-athlete Sid Yap has earned the George Mason OrthoVirginia Student Achiever Award. He is not only an accomplished thrower, having four top 10 performances for the 2018 outdoor season, he is also an extraordinary ambassador for Mason Athletics in the community. 

The award has been put into place to recognize outstanding student-athletes not just for their athletic performances.

George Mason Director of Athletics Brad Edwards along with team physician Dr. Frank Pettrone presented the award to the senior during halftime of the George Mason men's basketball game against Jacksonville State on Tuesday.

The Gainesville, Va., native has been a member of SAAC, the Student Athlete Advisory Committee, since his sophomore year, although he has been participating with SAAC in the community before even being an official representative. 

The senior has led the efforts for the SAAC Welcome Back Event and has established numerous opportunities for service within the track and field team. He independently created, organized, and managed the adoption of an elementary school by his team to help educate the youth and spread the sport throughout the local community. 

On the track, Yap tabbed a personal-best mark of 15.15m in the weight throw at the Great Dane Classic on Jan. 12, 2019. He also posted a personal-best mark in the discus throw (45.90) at the 2018 Atlantic 10 Outdoor Championships. 

Yap will graduate in May with a Bachelor of Science in Information and Operations Systems.

OrthoVirginia Student Achiever Definition:
The OrthoVirginia Student Achiever Award has been put into place to recognize outstanding student athletes not just for their athletic performances. The student athlete can be recognized for anything that they have done that exceptional outside their playing field… whether it be community service, leadership on campus, consistent performance in the classroom, incredible attitude, recovering from a long injury, improvement on the field, etc.