10 notable Olympians from North Carolina (5 past and 5 present)

Check out the stories behind 10 Olympians from North Carolina: Five greats of years past and five who hope to make their mark at this year’s competition.

The Summer Olympics are a time when, even in a country as divided as we currently are, most folks in America come together in cheering for their country — extreme culture war enthusiasts notwithstanding. 

There will be 592 American athletes from 46 states competing in this year’s Olympics, which will begin on July 24 and last through Aug. 11 in Paris, France. How are we to know whom to root for? We’re here to help with that. 

Who doesn’t love a hometown hero? With the Olympics right around the corner, it’s the perfect time to look back on some of the most notable Olympians to ever come from North Carolina. More urgently, we’ll introduce you to five athletes making the trip to Paris this year who hope to join the ranks of North Carolina’s greatest Olympians — or at least bring home a medal or two. 

According to NCPedia, 31 athletes and coaches who have competed in the Olympics have later been inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame. Below, we’ve listed five of the most notable inductees who, whether or not they saw great results at the actual Olympics they competed in, all made huge impacts in their respective sports.  

Former Olympians from North Carolina 

UNITED STATES – MARCH 29: College Basketball: NCAA Final Four, North Carolinian Michael Jordan (23) in action, making game winning shot vs Georgetown, New Orleans, LA 3/29/1982 (Manny Millan/Sports Illustrated/Getty Images)

Michael Jordan

By far the most recognizable name on either of our lists, MJ is arguably the best basketball player to ever live. A late bloomer at Laney High School in his hometown of Wilmington, Jordan became a star at UNC-Chapel Hill after hitting the game-winning shot to beat Georgetown in 1982. He went on to lead the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships. 

In 1984, before Jordan was drafted into the NBA, he helped lead a team of college players to a gold medal at the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. He wasn’t able to compete in 1988 due to a rule from the International Basketball Federation barring professional players from competing. Thanks to a rule change in 1989, Jordan got another chance, leading the Dream Team to a gold medal in Barcelona in 1992.   

Jim Beatty

When the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame inducted its first class of nominees in 1963, Jim Beatty, a track and field athlete who participated in the 1960 Olympics, became the first North Carolina Olympian to be inducted. 

A native of Charlotte and graduate of UNC Chapel Hill, Beatty was known as the best American middle-distance runner in the early 1960s, setting the record for 1-mile; 2-mile; and 5,000-meter runs. Though he did not medal in 1960, he went on to make history two years later when he became the first man to run a mile under 4 minutes indoors at the Los Angeles Times Meet. 

Kay Yow

In 1989, legendary North Carolina State University Wolfpack women’s basketball coach Kay Yow became the first woman ever inducted into the NC Sports Hall of Fame. As head women’s coach at NC State from 1975–2009, Yow compiled a 589-242 record, ranking fifth on the all-time win list for college women coaches. She served as the assistant coach for the USA women’s basketball team in 1984, then returned as the head coach in 1988. Both teams won gold medals. 

Kay was one of three sisters from Gibsonville alongside Deborah and Susan who made their mark on women’s college basketball in North Carolina. In her senior year, Susan became the first women’s basketball player at State to be named to the All-America team. She started coaching in 1978 and worked under her sister Kay as an assistant coach of the US women’s team in 1988.  

Harry Williamson

A track and field athlete from High Point, Harry Williamson became the first North Carolinian to compete as an Olympian in 1936. Though he didn’t medal, placing sixth in the 800-meter run, he would be vindicated later that same year in a 4×880 relay race in which he and three other Americans (Chuck Hornbostel, Bob Young, and John Woodruff) defeated a British Empire team and set a world record in the process.

Having been an All-American at UNC Chapel Hill who finished second in the mile at the 1935 NCAA Championships and fourth in 1934, Williamson was finally inducted into the NC Sports Hall of Fame in 1999. 

Karen Shelton

While she may not be a household name in the wider sports world, in the world of collegiate field hockey Karen Shelton is a legend. Though born in Hawaii and a graduate of West Chester State College in Pennsylvania, it was at UNC Chapel Hill where Shelton had her greatest impact as a coach. 

In 1981, Shelton was named field hockey coach at UNC, and she coached there for 35 years through 2015. In that time, she was named National Coach of the Year five times while leading UNC to six NCAA championships and nine runner-up finishes. She was named ACC Coach of the Year eight times. She even competed in the Olympics while coaching, making the USA team as a player in 1980 and 1984, winning a bronze medal in the latter contest.  

Olympians from North Carolina that are headed to the Paris 2024 Games

Now it’s time for the next generation to have their shot at greatness. Here are five North Carolina athletes we’ll be watching during this year’s Olympics. 

EUGENE, OREGON – JUNE 30: Anna Cockrell looks on ahead of competing in the women’s 400 meter hurdles final on Day Ten of the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Track & Field Trials at Hayward Field on June 30, 2024 in Eugene, Oregon. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images Sport/Getty Images)

Anna Cockrell

At 26 years old, Anna Cockrell, a graduate of Providence Day School in Charlotte, went into the 2020 Olympics (which took place in 2021 due to COVID-related delays) with high hopes. Despite her disappointing showing in Tokyo, finishing eighth in the 400-meter hurdles, she has the talent and potential to join the list above as a legend. Cockrell earned silver in the 400-meter hurdles at the Olympic trials with a time of 52.64 seconds, her fastest time ever logged in that event.  

The 400-meter hurdle prelims will be held on Aug. 4 from 4-7 p.m. and can be viewed on Peacock.  

Casey Murphy

On June 26, North Carolina Courage goalkeeper Casey Murphy was named to Emma Hayes’ 18-player United States Women’s National Team roster for the 2024 Olympics. Murphy has 15 clean sheets in 19 appearances at the international level, including three big saves in a 3-0 win over South Korea in June. Murphy was a member of the 2023 Women’s World Cup roster and the starting keeper for the U.S. U-20 World Cup team in 2016, leading the tournament in saves.

The US will open Group B play on July 25, one day before the opening ceremonies, against Zambia (9 p.m. local/3 p.m. ET) at Stade de Nice in Nice.  

WEST HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA – NOVEMBER 20: Rugby player Naya Tapper poses for a portrait during the Team USA Tokyo 2020 Olympics shoot on November 20, 2019 in West Hollywood, California. (Harry How/Getty Images Sport/Getty Images)

Naya Tapper

Now the co-captain of the US women’s rugby team, Naya Tapper began her rugby career in 2012 as a student-athlete at UNC-Chapel Hill, switching gears after a successful track career at West Mecklenburg High School in Charlotte. After earning her first international XVs cap with the USA Women’s National Team against France during the 2016 Women’s Super Series, Tapper was selected to the Rugby World Cup 2017 squad, where she helped her teammates reach the tournament semifinal.

Tapper played on the 2020 Olympics team that finished sixth, but she’ll be hoping for a better result now before riding into the sunset. She announced on July 11 that she’ll retire after this year’s games. 

Women’s rugby pool play begins on July 28 at 9:30 a.m. 

Ethan Ramos

Ethan Ramos had a busy March. He secured his spot as a competitor in the 2024 Olympic Games after earning a step on the podium at the 2024 Pan-Am Olympic Games Qualifiers in Acapulco, Mexico on March 1, then returned to North Carolina to wrap up his third season as an assistant coach for Duke University’s men’s wrestling team during the March 10 ACC Championships. 

Competing in the 86kg Freestyle bracket, scheduled to take place on Aug. 8 at 11:30 p.m., Ramos will represent Puerto Rico in the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris, marking a significant milestone in his wrestling career.

VIÑA DEL MAR, CHILE – NOVEMBER 02: Seth Francis Rider of Team USA competes in the Men’s Triathlon at Playa El Sol on Day 13 of Santiago 2023 Pan Am Games on November 02, 2023 in Viña del Mar, Chile. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images Sport/Getty Images)

Seth Rider

Though originally from Germantown, Tennessee, Seth Rider competed as a triathlon runner at Queen’s University of Charlotte beginning as a freshman in 2015. He started well before then, however, running his first triathlon at just six years old. 

In 2021, after graduating from Queen’s, he was part of the United States team that won gold in the mixed relay at the World Triathlon Championship Series in Montreal. He also won a silver medal in the mixed relay at the 2023 Pan American Games in addition to finishing fifth in the individual race. After having just missed out on making the US team that was headed to Tokyo in 2021, this year he picked up the final spot on the five-person team. 

The men’s individual race will take place on July 30, with the mixed relay scheduled for Aug. 5. 

This article first appeared on Good Info News Wire and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.