Alysha Newman cleared the bar at 4.85 meters, setting a Canadian record in the pole vault and, even better, winning a bronze medal for her country at the Paris Olympic Games.
While the former Miami Hurricanes track and field star’s medal-winning vault pleased the thousands of people packed inside Stade de France on Aug. 7, it was also monumental for another reason. It added to the tally of medals won at the Paris Games by athletes with ties to the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), which Miami joined 20 years ago.
Olympians with connections to the league helped the now 18-member ACC rack up 102 medals—39 of them gold—at the recently completed Games, more than any other conference in the nation.
A total of 13 different schools throughout the ACC won at least one medal during the Paris Olympics, with conference newcomer Stanford leading the way with 39 medals.
If anything, the achievement proves just how pivotal collegiate sports are to the Olympic movement, said Dan Radakovich, University of Miami vice president and director of athletics, noting that the opportunities colleges and universities afford their student-athletes help them develop into Olympic-caliber competitors.
“On our campus as well as on other campuses throughout the Atlantic Coast Conference, Olympic sports, whether it’s swimming and diving, volleyball, or track and field, are extremely important for the Olympic movement,” he said. “Those sports are highlighted every four years at the Olympics, giving our athletes a chance to shine on the world stage. It’s helped the ACC from the standpoint of the recognition those sports bring to the conference.”
The University has a rich history with the Olympics, with more than 50 Hurricanes competing for various countries since 1936—among them, Lauryn Williams, the only woman in United States history to medal in both the Summer and Winter Games.
A total of 13 current or former Hurricanes competed at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
Several of the University’s coaches have coached for Team USA during their careers. Legendary Miami Hurricanes coach Randy Ableman, who recently announced his retirement after leading the diving program for 35 years, has coached 17 Olympic divers, including two who competed in Paris: Mohamed Farouk, who represented Egypt, and Chiara Pellacani of Italy.
Radakovich called colleges and universities “the training grounds” for future Olympians.
“When you look at the Olympic model in other places, you’ll notice there are countries that find talent and develop it at special schools and special programs, allowing those athletes to then represent their country in the Olympic Games,” he explained. “The United States doesn’t do that. We allow our colleges and universities and the very vibrant programs that are a part of the NCAA to be the training ground for young athletes. And if they’re good enough, either during their collegiate careers or after leaving higher education, they become part of the U.S. Olympic movement. And that’s a real point of pride for the ACC.”
