Men’s champion Galen Rupp of Oregon and women’s third-place finisher Tasmin Fanning of Virginia Tech are this year’s scholar-athletes of the year in Division I cross country, as selected by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.

Rupp, who also led Oregon to the team championship last fall while improving on his 2007 individual runner-up finish, is one of 40 men who earned all-academic recognition this year from the association, while Fanning is one of 77 women listed.

Rupp, who also competed for the United States in the 10,000-meter run at last summer’s Olympic Games, is a senior business administration major. Fanning, who became the first Hokie man or woman to win a regional cross country crown with her win last fall in the Southeast region, is a human nutrition, foods and exercise major at Virginia Tech.

The Big 10 Conference – paced by five honorees from Minnesota – led all Division I conferences with 13 honorees on the women’s’ all-academic list, while the Big 12 Conference led men with six honorees.