Villanova Univeristy Athletics

Sept. 13, 2000

Young boys and girls from all over the world go to sleep every night dreaming of what it might be like to someday represent their countries as an athlete in the Olympic games. For most children, these Olympic dreams remain exactly that- a dream. Aspirations such as these, however, have been achieved often at Villanova University. At the 2000 Summer Olympics, four present or past Wildcat athletes will be competing for their respective countries in Sydney, Australia. These four athletes give Villanova a total of 40 Olympians in the school's glorious history- a history that has seen at least one Villanova Wildcat in every Summer Olympics since 1948.

In 1908, J.E. O'Connell became the first-ever Villanova athlete to compete in the Olympic Games. Exactly 40 years after O'Connell became the first Wildcat Olympian, Villanova track stars George Guida and Browning Ross became the next set of Olympians, and started a consecutive games streak that has yet to be broken. On September 15, as the opening ceremonies of the 2000 games commence, Sonia O'Sullivan, Jen Rhines, Mike Neill and Maddy Crippen will continue the tradition that O'Connell began so long ago.

Villanova's world renowned track program has produced 33 of Villanova's 40 Olympians, with 28 coming from the men's track & field program and five coming from the women's program. In addition, the Wildcat swimming and diving program has produced six Olympians, while the Villanova baseball program will have its first Olympian, Mike Neill, in 2000.

Villanova's 2000 Olympians each head to Sydney with tremendous credentials. Sonia O'Sullivan, a 1990 Villanova graduate, competed for Ireland in both the 1992 and 1996 Olympic Games. The 2000 games will mark an unprecedented third games for O'Sullivan, who will compete in the 1,500m, 5,000m, and 10,000m. As a student-athlete at Villanova, O'Sullivan earned the renowned Honda Broderick Award twice and won NCAA individual titles five times during her storybook career.

The Wildcats second 2000 women's track & field Olympian, Jen Rhines, also left Villanova with an outstanding list of accomplishments. Rhines amassed five individual NCAA titles, and one relay championship during her four years on the Main Line. Like O'Sullivan, Rhines also received the Honda Broderick Award, taking home the honor in 1994. She too will compete in the 10,000m run in Sydney.

"It was a great experience at Villanova being around such other great runners and being around so many National Championship teams in cross country," said Rhines. "Going to school with athletes such as Sonia O'Sullivan and Vicki Huber made me realize that I could be an Olympian if I worked and trained hard."

"After I had seen some success at Villanova, I knew that if I continued to train hard after school, that I would have a shot at the 2000 Olympics," added Rhines. "It is really exciting being an Olympian. This is something I have dreamed of since I was a little kid. When I crossed that finish line and realized I had made the team, it was a feeling I will never forget."

The lone current Wildcat to earn a 2000 Olympic berth, Maddy Crippen arrived at Villanova in 1998 from nearby Conshohocken, Pa., already owning the status as one of the countries fastest individual medley swimmers. As a freshman, Crippen won a NCAA title in the 400 yard individual medley, becoming only the second Wildcat female swimmer ever to win a National Championship.

During the summer of 1999, Crippen added a U.S. National title to an already impressive resume that included a World Championship appearance in 1998. Her most important race came this past August, when a second place finish in the 400m Individual Medley at the United States Olympic Swim Team Trials earned her an Olympic berth and a lifelong dream come true.

"Behind the curtain when you are getting ready to go out, I'm pretty good friends with a lot of the people I swim against, so I am usually one of the ones who is laughing and joking back there a lot of the time," said Crippen. "This time (at the trials) I wasn't. I stuck to myself and turned my music up as loud as it could go so I couldn't hear anything. I couldn't hear when they were announcing our names. As soon as I knew they were done announcing my name, I took my headphones off and just concentrated on my own lane, blocked everyone out, and swam my own race."

"I am thrilled," remarked Crippen. "I am definitely excited to go and represent the United States. It has been three years of hoping and a lot of what ifs. I am glad it is finally here and I am excited to go over to Sydney."

The 2000 Summer Olympics will include a Villanova baseball player for the first time ever, in Wildcat standout Mike Neill. Neill played at Villanova from 1989-91. As a junior in 1991, Neill batted .468 with 85 runs scored, 76 RBI, 22 doubles and 19 home runs. For his efforts in 1991, he was named the Big East Conference Player of the Year. Neill still currently owns nine Villanova school records.

A member of the Seattle Mariner organization, Neill is currently playing for the Mariner AAA affiliate Tacoma Rainiers. He made the big leagues for the first time in 1998 as a member of the Oakland Athletics.

"It is quite an honor in itself to represent one's country, but to be a member of the Olympic team is a tremendous honor," said Neill. "There are so many different feelings that go along with being an Olympian. I am just trying to soak it all in and enjoy myself. It is going to be a tremendous life experience."

"I hurt my arm in 1997 and had major surgery. It took me almost two and a half years to come back," said Neill. "Did I ever think I would make the Olympics? Maybe in my wildest dreams."

This September, four more Olympic dreams will come true. For Sonia O'Sullivan, it is a dream she has reached twice before. For Jen Rhines, Maddy Crippen and Mike Neill, the Olympic experience will be a first time feeling that they will never relinquish. For years these four athletes proudly wore the blue and white of Villanova University. In Sydney they will bear the colors of a nation.

History of Villanova Athletes in the Olympics