Dec. 10, 2009
SouthCarolina Athletic Hall of Fame Full Release
COLUMBIA, S.C. – Georgia Tech swimming head coach Courtney Shealy Hart has been chosen for induction into the 2010 class of South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame. Shealy Hart will receive the state of South Carolina’s highest athletic honor on May 24, 2010 at a ceremony held in Columbia.
“I’m very honored to be inducted into the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame,” said Shealy Hart. “It’s especially rewarding considering the level of people that will be joining me in the class of 2010.
“The sport of swimming has grown leaps and bounds in the state of South Carolina and it’s nice to know that I may have been a little part of that growth. I want to personally thank my family and all of my coaches that have helped get this far.”
Shealy Hart, a native of Irmo, S.C., won two Olympic gold medals in swimming (400-meter relay and 400-freestyle relay) for the USA in 2000 after leading the University of Georgia to the NCAA team swim championships in 1999 and 2000. In 2000, she was named the NCAA Female Swimmer of Year after winning national titles in the 50-meter freestyle, the 100-meter freestyle and 100-meter backstroke. Shealy Hart also won NCAA titles in the 400-meter freestyle and 400-meter medley relay.
Shealy Hart is currently in her first season as head coach of the Yellow Jacket men’s and women’s swimming teams after spending the last two season on The Flats as an assistant coach. Prior to joining the Georgia Tech coaching staff in 2007, Shealy Hart was an assistant at North Florida for one season.
Joining Shealy Hart in the 50th Anniversary Class of the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame are Clemson graduate and NBA veteran Horace Grant, Grand Slam Tennis Champion Stan Smith, former Major League Baseball player Wayne Tolleston and Bob McNair owner of the NFL’s Houston Texans, along with Furman tennis coach Paul Scarpa, former Clemson offensive lineman Joe Bostic and ex-South Carolina defensive back Bill Currier.
