June 4, 2002

Champaign, Ill. - Quarterback Kurt Kittner and sprinter/hurdler Perdita Felicien have been named the Dike Eddleman Male and Female Athletes of the Year as the most outstanding athletes at the University of Illinois this year.

Kittner led Illinois to its first ever BCS bowl game and to the Illini's first outright Big Ten title in football since in 1983. Illinois also won 10 games for the first time since 1989. A second-team All-Big Ten recipient, Kittner was a finalist for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, a semifinalist for the Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award, was 11th in the Heisman Trophy balloting. For the season, Kittner completed 221 of 409 passes for 3256 yards and 27 touchdowns. He ends his career as the all-time winningest quarterback in Illinois history and holds career school records for total offense (8,880 yards) and touchdown passes (70). Kittner earned two Big Ten Player of the Week honors and is a three-time Illinois Team Most Valuable Player. He was drafted in the fifth round by the Atlanta Falcons.

Perdita Felicien won the Dike Eddleman Female Athlete of the Year Award

Felicien became the first Illinois athlete to win two national championships in the same year, winning the national title indoors in the 60-meter hurdles and outdoors in the 100-meter hurdles. In the process, Felicien helped the Illini to 10th place in the NCAA Outdoor National Championships. Her time of 12.83 seconds in the 100m hurdles ranks her as the top Canadian in the event this year, while her 7.90 clocking in the 60m hurdles is the sixth-fastest in the world and set an NCAA record. Felicien ran the anchor leg of the winning 4x100-meter shuttle hurdle relay team at Drake Relays and was named the Most Outstanding Performer at Drake.

Felicien also won the award last season and becomes just the 10h repeat winner in the 63 years of the award, joining Andy Phillip (1942-43), Dike Eddleman (1948-49), Dick Butkus (1964-65), Dave Scholz (1968-69), Tony Eason (1982-83), Mary Eggers (1987-89), Renee Heiken (1991-92), Tonja Buford (1992-93) and Ashley Berggren (1997-98). Kittner is the first football player to receive the honor since Kevin Hardy in 1996.

Felicien and Kittner will represent Illinois in the Big Ten Player of the Year ballot, the winner of which will be announced later this summer.

All-Time Illinois Athlete of the Year Winners
1940 William J. Hapac, basketball & baseball
1941 John Drish, basketball & baseball
1942 Andy Phillip, basketball & baseball
1943 Andy Phillip, basketball & baseball
1944 Buddy Young, football & track
1945 Walton "Junior" Kirk, basketball
1946 Herbert McKenley, track
1947 Alex Agase, football & wrestling
1948 Dwight "Dike" Eddleman, football, basketball & track
1949 Dwight "Dike" Eddleman, football, basketball & track
1950 Russell Steger, football & baseball
1951 Don Sunderlage, basketball
1952 Charles Boerio, football
1953 Clive Follmer, basketball & baseball
1954 J.C. Caroline, football
1955 Paul Judson, basketball
1956 Em Lindbeck, football & baseball
1957 Abe Woodson, football & track
1958 Bob Mitchell, football & track
1959 Abe Grossfeld, gymnastics
1960 Bill Burrell, football
1961 Bill Brown, football & track
1962 Doug Mills, football, basketball & baseball
1963 Harold Holmes, gymnastics
1964 Dick Butkus, football
1965 Dick Butkus, football
1966 Jim Grabowski, football
1967 Jim Dawson, basketball
1968 Dave Scholz, basketball
1969 Dave Scholz, basketball
1970 Mike Price, basketball
1971 Lee LaBadie, track/cross country
1972 Rick Gross, track/cross country
1973-81 Award not given
1982 Tony Eason, football
1983 Tony Eason, football
Marianne Dickerson, track/cc
1984 Don Thorp, football
Karen Brems, gymnastics
1985 Charles Lake, gymnastics
Kelly McNee, track/cross country
1986 David Williams, football
Jonelle Polk, basketball
1987 Darrin Fletcher, baseball
Mary Eggers, volleyball
1988 Tim Simon, track
Mary Eggers, volleyball
1989 David Zeddies, gymnastics
Mary Eggers, volleyball
1990 Kendall Gill, basketball
Laura Bush, volleyball
1991 Jon Llewellyn, wrestling
Sarah Sharp, basketball
Renee Heiken, golf
1992 Len Sitko, track/cross country
Renee Heiken, golf
Tonja Buford, track
1993 Marko Koers, track
Tonja Buford, track
1994 Anthony Jones, track
Tina Rogers, volleyball
1995 Dana Howard, football
Steve Marianetti, wrestling
Tonya Williams, track
1996 Kevin Hardy, football
Tonya Williams, track
1997 Ernest Benion, wrestling
Ashley Berggren, basketball
1998 Eric Siebert, wrestling
Ashley Bergren, basketball
Yvonne Harrison, track & field
1999 Oliver Freelove, tennis
Cristy Chapman, volleyball
2000 Jason Anderson, baseball
Jessica Aveyard, swimming
2001 Adam Tirapelle, wrestling
Perdita Felicien, track & field
2002 Kurt Kittner, football
Perdita Felicien, track & field