Bird expected in Storrs to celebrate UConn Olympians
Sue Bird’s All-American UConn career at the turn of the century was the foundation for her becoming a women’s basketball icon.
Bird, a five-time Olympic Gold medalist, is expected to return to campus Sunday morning to help her alma mater honor other Huskies who have competed on the world’s biggest stage.
At 11 a.m. Sunday, an hour before the women’s basketball team plays Notre Dame, the university will formally unveil a monument that honors coaches and athletes with UConn ties who have competed in the Olympics.
Bird, 41, recently played in her final Olympics, starting at point guard and helping Team USA to a gold medal in Tokyo. She is expected to be joined at the unveiling by Swin Cash, Stefanie Dolson, Asjha Jones and others.
Bird won gold at 2004 Athens, 2008 Beijing, 2012 London, 2016 Rio de Janiero and 2020 Tokyo, which was pushed back to summer 2021 due to the pandemic. Former UConn teammate Diana Taurasi also won gold each at each of those Olympics, making those players the only five-time gold medalists in Olympic basketball history.
Bird has played with the WNBA’s Seattle Storm, and has won four championships, since 2002.
Cash, a three-time WNBA champion who retired as a player in 2016, won gold in 2004 and 2012. She is now vice president of basketball operations for the NBA’s New Orleans Pelicans.
Bird, Taurasi and Cash were teammates on one of the greatest teams in college basketball history in 2001-02.
Dolson, a two-time allstar who helped the Chicago Sky to the 2021 WNBA championship, won gold in the inaugural women’s basketball 3x3 event in Tokyo.
Jones, who played in the WNBA in 2002-15 and won a title with the Lynx in her final season, won gold in 2012. She currently works in the Portland Trailblazers front office.
Athletic director David Benedict and board of trustees member Andy
Bessette, also a former Olympian, will comment at the unveiling.
The monument, located on Hillside Road and on the north side of Gampel Pavilion, reads, “Dedicated to the world-class athletes and coaches from the University of Connecticut that were selected to represent their country at the Olympic and Paralympic Games.”
The names of the Olympians, their years and the city of competition are listed on plaques affixed to the monument, which also notes medals won by individuals and by teams with UConn representation on the coaching staff.
UConn had three Olympic participants for the 1980 Moscow summer games, which the USA boycotted. Bessette (men’s track and field), Dee Rowe (men’s basketball assistant coach) and Joe Morrone (men’s soccer) are on the monument.
The full list of names on the monument: 1952 Helsinki
Frank Dooley, men’s swimming (USA) 1980 Moscow
Andy Bessette, men’s track and field (USA) Joe Morrone, men’s soccer (USA)
Dee Rowe, men’s basketball assistant coach (USA)
1984 Los Angeles
Erhardt Kapp, men’s soccer (USA)
1988 Seoul
Tracey Fuchs, women’s field hockey (USA) Vicente Ithier, men’s basketball (Puerto Rico)
Charles Nagy, baseball (USA) — Gold 1996 Atlanta
Tracey Fuchs, women’s field hockey (USA) Rebecca Lobo, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
Diane Madl, women’s field hockey (USA) 2000 Sydney
Svetlana Abrosimova, women’s basketball (Russia)
Ray Allen, men’s basketball (USA) — Gold Geno Auriemma, women’s basketball assistant coach (USA) — Gold
Dudley Dorival, men’s track and field (Haiti) Joanne Durant, women’s track and field (Barbados)
Sara Whalen, women’s soccer (USA) — Silver
Kara Wolters, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
2004 Athens
Sue Bird, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold Swin Cash, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
Dudley Dorival, men’s track and field (Haiti) Abed Kaaki, men’s swimming (Lebanon) Emeka Okafor, men’s basketball (USA) — Bronze
Rashidat Sadiq, women’s basketball (Nigeria)
Pete Soteropoulos, baseball (Greece) Diana Taurasi, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
Maria Yatrakis, women’s soccer (Greece) 2006 Turin
Bethany Hart, women’s bobsled (USA) 2008 Beijing
Svetlana Abrosimova, women’s basketball (Russia) — Bronze
Sue Bird, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold Dudley Dorival, men’s track and field (Haiti) Chinyere Pigot, women’s swimming (Suriname)
Diana Taurasi, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
2012 London
Geno Auriemma, women’s basketball head coach (USA) — Gold
Sue Bird, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold Donn Cabral, men’s track and field (USA) Swin Cash, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
Tina Charles, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
Phylicia George, women’s track and field (Canada)
Melissa Gonzalez, women’s field hockey (USA)
Asjha Jones, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
Maya Moore, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
Chinyere Pigot, women’s swimming (Suriname)
Diguan Pigot, men’s swimming (Suriname) Diana Taurasi, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
2014 Sochi
Jessica Lutz, women’s ice hockey (Switzerland) — Bronze
2016 Rio De Janeiro
Geno Auriemma, women’s basketball head coach (USA) — Gold
Sue Bird, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold Donn Cabral, men’s track and field (USA) — Gold
Tina Charles, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
Phylicia George, women’s track and field (Canada)
Melissa Gonzalez, women’s field hockey (USA)
Stephanie Labbé, women’s soccer (Canada) — Bronze
Maya Moore, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
Kia Nurse, women’s basketball (Canada) Cecile Pieper, women’s field hockey (Germany) — Bronze
Breanna Stewart, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
Diana Taurasi, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
2018 Pyeongchang
Steve Emt, wheelchair curling (USA) Phylicia George, women’s bobsled (Canada) — Bronze
2020 Tokyo
Sue Bird, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold Tina Charles, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
Napheesa Collier, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
Amy Dixon, women’s paratriathlon (USA) Stefanie Dolson, women’s basketball/3x3 (USA) — Gold
Aaliyah Edwards, women’s basketball (Canada)
Gavin Edwards, men’s basketball (Japan) Niels Giffey, men’s basketball (Germany) Stephanie Labbé, women’s soccer (Canada) — Gold
Kia Nurse, women’s basketball (Canada) Cecile Pieper, women’s field hockey (Germany)
Jennifer Rizzotti, women’s basketball assistant coach (USA) — Gold
Breanna Stewart, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
Diana Taurasi, women’s basketball (USA) — Gold
Roisin Upton, women’s field hockey (Ireland)
Gabby Williams, women’s (France) — Bronze