Fourteen-year-old Noah Flegel from Lighthouse Point, Florida, has been named the 2011 Sports Illustrated Kids SportsKid of the Year, it was announced today during an assembly at North Broward Preparatory School, where he is in the eighth grade.
Flegel won both the World Wakeboard Association’s World and National Championships last summer and took home third place in the pro men’s skim division at the World Wake Surfing Championship. Flegel’s equally impressive in the classroom, where he maintains a 3.5 GPA, and is giving back to his community by organizing and cooking meals for the homeless.
“Not many fourteen year olds have a 900-degree spin and a world championship under their belt before they head to high school,” said SI Kids Managing Editor Bob Der. “Noah’s dedication to his training and athletic excellence, balanced with a strong academic foundation and giving back to his community make him the prefect SportsKid of the Year.”
Noah will be honored alongside the 2011 Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year at the award celebration in early December in New York City. He will grace the cover of the December issue of SI Kids, which will be in homes in late-November and he will also appear on Cartoon Network’s “Hall of Game Awards” in early 2012.
SI Kids received thousands of entries for the award, which was introduced in 2007, and the edit staff narrowed the field to 10 semifinalists. Through online voting, the list was narrowed to three finalists from which Noah emerged as the winner of the 2011 SI Kids SportsKid of the Year.
