Cal State L.A.'s Athletics Hall fo Fame

LOS ANGELES – Cal State L.A.’s Athletics Hall of Fame is about to include four new members.

Women’s track and field stars Nicole Duncan and Diana Williams Muhammad, former Director of Athletics Carol M. Dunn and longtime Faculty Athletics Representative Fleur Yano will be inducted into the Athletics Hall of Fame on February 22 in the Golden Eagle Ballroom. The Class of 2011 will be the 21st class to be inducted and will bring the total Hall of Fame membership to 109.

“This is another outstanding class to induct into the Athletics Hall of Fame here at Cal State L.A.,” Cal State L.A. Director of Athletics Dan Bridges said. “We’re very excited to honor these four individuals at our upcoming Hall of Fame induction. They are all very deserving of this honor.”

They will join other notable Hall of Famers like tennis legend Billie Jean King, two-time Olympic track and field gold medalist Mal Whitfield, actor Tommy “Tiny” Lister, current Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Jay Gibbons, and former Major League Baseball pitcher and current Colorado Rockies pitching coach Bob Apodaca.

Duncan, who was inducted into the NCAA Division II Track and Field Hall of Fame along with Lister in 2008, joined an elite group of collegiate athletes when she starred for three seasons at Cal State L.A. She became only the fourth athlete – regardless of gender – to win NCAA championships in the 100 meter dash, 200 and the long jump in the same year.

Lisa Dillard of NCAA Division III Christopher Newport, Chandra Sturrup of Division II Norfolk State and the great Jesse Owens at Ohio State were the first three to accomplish the 100-200-long jump trifecta.

Duncan was named the NCAA Division II Female Athlete of the Year in 2002 and presented with the prestigious Honda Award at a national convention in Dallas, Tex. She completed her Cal State L.A. career with eight individual NCAA championships and 14 All-America awards in indoor and outdoor track and field.

Muhammad still holds the Cal State L.A. record in the 100 meters with a time of 10.94 and is part of the 4x100 relay team that holds the school standard with a time of 44.1. She earned five All-America awards while at Cal State L.A. and is still in the all-time top-10 in three events.

She was a two-time Olympian (1980 and 1984) and won the United States championship in the 100 meters in 1987. She was also part of the gold-medal 4x100 relay team at the 1987 IAAF World Championships.

She is currently the head coach of the Chicago State University women’s cross country and track and field teams.

Dunn was Cal State L.A.’s Athletics Director from 1988-2005. She made it a top priority to ensure gender-equity at Cal State L.A. During her tenure, Cal State L.A. teams made a combined 78 appearances in the NCAA Championships and student-athletes won 33 individual NCAA titles.

Dunn was named an NACDA Athletic Director of the Year in 2001 and she served on the prestigious NCAA Council from 1995-2000. She was the women’s basketball head coach from 1981-85 and an associate athletics director from 1982-88.

Yano was Cal State L.A.’s Faculty Athletics Representative from 1987-96. In her role, she monitored the eligibility and academic progress of the Golden Eagle student-athletes. She was elected to the Intercollegiate Athletics Board and held that position until her retirement in 1996.

She joined Cal State L.A.’s faculty in the Department of Physics and Astronomy in 1964. She served on the Academic Senate and also chaired the Educational Policy Committee. In 1984-85, Yano was the resident director for the CSU study-aboard program in Sweden. She was also coordinator of the University’s China exchange program.

The Cal State L.A. Athletics Hall of Fame was instituted in 1985 to honor the outstanding achievements of individuals who have participated in intercollegiate athletics at the University as student-athletes, coaches, administrators or staff and who have brought honor to themselves, Cal State L.A. and their communities.

Members of the Athletics Hall of Fame are selected by a panel of Cal State L.A. staff and alumni. To be eligible for the Hall of Fame, a student-athlete must be an alumnus of Cal State L.A. with a record of outstanding achievement in at least one sport. The student-athlete must have graduated or attended in good standing at least five years ago.

Courtesy Cal State LA