The United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee announced its 2019 induction class with nine individuals, one team, two legends, one coach and one special contributor. Swimmer Dara Torres, diving coach Ron O’Brien and paralympic swimmer Erin Popovich were among the 13 inductees that will be honored and inducted at an awards dinner Friday November 1 at the US Olympic and Paralympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.
The rest of the inductees include:
- Candace Cable (Para alpine skiing, Para Nordic skiing, Para track and field)
- Lisa Leslie (basketball), Nastia Liukin (gymnastics)
- Misty May-Treanor (beach volleyball)
- Apolo Anton Ohno (short track speedskating)
- Chris Waddell (Para alpine skiing, Para track and field)
- the 1998 U.S. Olympic Women’s Ice Hockey Team
- John Carlos (legend: track and field)
- Tommie Smith (legend: track and field)
- Tim Nugent (special contributor)
Dara Torres
Dara Torres; Photo Courtesy: JM STREINER
- Twelve-time Olympic medalist
- tied for most decorated female swimmer in history
- first American to swim at five Olympics
- at 41, set three American records en route to three silver medals at Beijing 2008
- 16-time national champion
- Inducted into International Swimming Hall of Fame in 2016.
Ron O’Brien
Ron O’Brien (left) with Dick Kimball; Photo Courtesy: ISHOF Archive
- Coached the U.S. Olympic diving team at eight straight Olympic Games between 1968-1996
- his divers won 154 gold, 90 silver and 78 bronze medals in major Olympic, world, national, NCAA and Big Ten Conference diving championships in his first 25 years of coaching
- all 12 U.S. diving individual national titles were won by his divers in 1988
- inducted into International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1988
Erin Popovich
Photo Courtesy: Swimming World Archive
- Three-time Paralympian and 19-time medalist, including 14 golds
- won seven golds in seven races, setting three world records and four Paralympic Games records at Athens 2004
- two-time winner of the ESPY Award for Best Female Athlete with a Disability