Smith Cross Country: Hall of Fame

Gwyn Hardesty-Coogan shares two-and-a-half things with most Smith cross-country runners:

1. She's a Smithie... (duh);
2. She ran on the cross-country team and;
2 1/2. She has a hyphenated last name

Hardesty-Coogan also shares something with a select few; she's a member of the College's newly formed Athletics Hall of Fame. Last Saturday night twelve individuals and one team, representing the best of Smith Athletics, were inducted into the Hall of Fame. College President Carol Christ and Director of Athletics Lynn Oberbillig led the festivities held at Alumnae Hall. Inductees included Senda Berenson, credited with bringing the game of basketball to women, and Dorothy Ainsworth, international leader in female physical education and former director of athletics at Smith.

Hardesty-Coogan was Smith's fourth national champion and their first Olympian. In 1986 she captured the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships 3,000-meter title for Smith. She holds Smith's indoor and outdoor 1,500 and 3,000 meter records and the indoor 1-mile record. In 1992 she qualified for the Barcelona Olympics and represented the United States in the 10,000-meter run. There, Hardesty-Coogan placed an impressive 13th. She also qualified for the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta as an alternate in the marathon.

Congratulations Gwyn!

Prior to Dinner