Big 12 Athlete of the Year candidates will be highlighted each day through July 19. Fans who follow the Big 12 Conference on Facebook and twitter will then be able to vote for their male and female choices from July 19-23. Fan voting will be considered in the final tally for selecting this prestigious award.

Today's featured candidates are Texas Tech's Kim Kaufman and Kennedy Kithuka.

MALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR NOMINEE	FEMALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR NOMINEE
Kennedy Kithuka; Cross Country, Indoor Track & Field Senior; Thika, Kenya. ♦  NCAA Cross Country Champion ♦  NCAA Indoor Track and Field Champion in the 5,000-meter run ♦  Big 12 Indoor Champion in the 3,000-meter run and 5,000-meter run ♦  Big 12 Cross Country Champion ♦  Male Cross Country Athlete of the Year by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association	Kim Kaufman; Golf Senior; Clark, S.D. ♦  Women's Golf Coaches Association second team All-American ♦  The first Tech women's golfer to be named an All-American in consecutive seasons ♦  All-Big 12 selection for second straight season ♦  Snapped the Texas Tech single-season and career stroke average records ♦  Ended the year ranked No. 22 nationally in Golfweek