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  "path": "/sports/2026/04/08/utah-governor-state-of-sports-awards-winners-list/",
  "publishedAt": "2026-04-09T04:30:24.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.deseret.com",
  "tags": [
    "106 Olympians and Paralympians represented Utah",
    "its sixth national championship",
    "Utah wins skiing national championship on home snow to extend dominant run",
    "already scored two goals",
    "Keller also represented Utah at the 2026 Olympics",
    "represented the U.S. and Utah",
    "a star sprinter at Herriman High School",
    "U.S. women’s deaf national team win its fifth Deaflympics",
    "U.S. women’s deaf national soccer team wins historic gold at the 2025 Deaflympics",
    "Utah Sports Commission",
    "led BYU’s softball team",
    "Dybantsa dominated",
    "Associated Press All-America First Team",
    "Deseret News 5A Player of the Year",
    "Akina",
    "win the Larry H. Miller Utah Open",
    "BYU freshman Kihei Akina becomes youngest champion in 99-year history of the Utah Open",
    "Photo gallery: Red Bull Soapbox race heavy on energy and smile"
  ],
  "textContent": "Utah Gov. Spencer Cox honored some of Utah’s top athletes, coaches and teams at the 14th annual Governor’s State of Sport Awards Wednesday night at the Delta Center.\n\nAthletes from the high school ranks to professionals were honored for their achievements over the past year.\n\nTwenty-three-time Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps was the event’s special guest.\n\nHere are the 14 award winners:\n\n### Team of the year\n\n**Team Utah at the Olympics and Paralympics**\n\nAt the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Games, 106 Olympians and Paralympians represented Utah and 14 countries, according to the State of Sport Awards.\n\nAthletes with Utah ties won 26 medals, including 10 gold, at the Winter Games.\n\n### Coach of the Year\n\n**Fredrik Landstedt: Skiing, Utah Utes**\n\nLandstedt led the University of Utah to its sixth national championship in seven years in March.\n\nThree of Landstedt’s former Utes competed at the 2026 Olympics for the U.S., Australia and Great Britain.\n\nUtah wins skiing national championship on home snow to extend dominant run\n\n### Professional Female Athlete of the Year\n\n**Mina Tanaka: Soccer, Utah Royals**\n\nTanaka was the Utah Royals’ leading goal scorer for the 2025 NWSL season with six goals and an assist.\n\nThis season, she has already scored two goals in three games after missing the first two games while leading the Japan women’s national team to an AFC Women’s Asian Cup title.\n\n### Professional Male Athlete of the Year\n\n**Clayton Keller: Hockey, Utah Mammoth**\n\nAs captain, Keller has the Mammoth on the verge of the team’s first playoff appearance. In his first season in Utah in 2025, Keller put together his best season yet with 30 goals and 60 assists. With five games left in the 2026 regular season, Keller has 26 goals and 54 assists.\n\nKeller also represented Utah at the 2026 Olympics, where he and Team USA won gold for the first time in 46 years.\n\n### Olympic Female Athlete of the Year\n\n**Kaysha Love: Bobsleigh, USA Bobsled**\n\nLove won her first Monobob World Championship in 2025 and represented the U.S. and Utah at her second Olympics this winter.\n\nLove was a star sprinter at Herriman High School and later UNLV. After just six bobsled races, she made her first Olympic team.\n\n### Olympic Male Athlete of the Year\n\n**Quinn Dehlinger: Freestyle Aerials, U.S. Ski & Snowboard**\n\nDehlinger, a Utah resident from Ohio, was named to his first Olympic team this year. But before Dehlinger could compete, he injured his knee during training at the 2026 Olympics and had to withdraw from competition.\n\nDehlinger previously tore his ACL in 2024 and came back the next year to win silver in aerials and gold in mixed team aerials at the World Championships.\n\n### Adaptive Female Athlete of the Year\n\n**Sophie Post: Soccer, U.S. Women’s Deaf National Team**\n\nPost helped the U.S. women’s deaf national team win its fifth Deaflympics in November. The U.S. has won every Deaflympics soccer tournament. Utahns Taegan Frandsen Ferrin and Payton DeGraw were also on the team.\n\nPost, a forward from Murray, Utah, played in all four games and tallied one goal and three assists at the Deaflympics.\n\nU.S. women’s deaf national soccer team wins historic gold at the 2025 Deaflympics\n\n### Adaptive Male Athlete of the Year\n\n**Brayden Butler: Para Climbing, USA Climbing**\n\nButler, a para climber, won his first World Cup and Para Climbing World Championship in 2025, according to the Utah Sports Commission.\n\nHe podiumed in every start of the season.\n\n### Collegiate Female Athlete of the Year\n\n**Ilove’a Brittingham: Softball, BYU Cougars**\n\nBrittingham led BYU’s softball team in 10 categories and the Big 12 in seven, according to the Utah Sports Commission.\n\nShe also set a BYU freshman RBI record and tied the single-season freshman home run record.\n\n### Collegiate Male Athlete of the Year\n\n**AJ Dybantsa: Basketball, BYU Cougars**\n\nDybantsa dominated in his freshman — and likely only — season at BYU, leading the country in scoring and averaging 25.5 points a game. He had seven 30-plus point games.\n\nHe became just the third Cougar to be named to the Associated Press All-America First Team, joining Danny Ainge and Jimmer Fredette. Dybantsa is in the running to be the No. 1 overall pick at this year’s NBA draft.\n\n### High School Female Athlete of the Year\n\n**Belle Sorensen: Soccer, Bountiful Redhawks**\n\nIn her senior season at Bountiful, Sorensen led the Redhawks to a 5A state title, scoring 25 goals and tallying 11 assists. She finished her Bountiful career with 81 goals and 33 assists, according to Utah Sports Commission, and was named the Deseret News 5A Player of the Year.\n\nShe is committed to play her college soccer at UVU.\n\n### High School Male Athlete of the Year\n\n**Kihei Akina: Golf, Lone Peak Knights**\n\nAkina is a three-time Utah High School Individual Medalist and two-time 6A State Champion. In August, Akina became the youngest golfer to win the Larry H. Miller Utah Open.\n\nAkina has continued to dominate since arriving at BYU last fall.\n\nBYU freshman Kihei Akina becomes youngest champion in 99-year history of the Utah Open\n\n### Partner of the Year\n\n**Feld Entertainment**\n\nFeld Entertainment, the**** live show production company, has entertained Utah for 25 years, including last year’s Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship Final and Monster Jam World Finals XXIV held at Rice-Eccles Stadium, according to the Utah Sports Commission.\n\n### Highlight of the Year\n\n**Red Bull Soapbox Race**\n\nNearly 50 people registered for the Red Bull Soapbox race held in front of the Utah state Capitol in June.\n\nPhoto gallery: Red Bull Soapbox race heavy on energy and smile\n\n###",
  "title": "These athletes were honored at 14th Annual Governor’s State of Sport Awards"
}