Community Awards

The Jack Kelly Fair Play Award was established by the United States Olympic Committee in 1985 to honor the late USOC President and Olympic medalist John B. “Jack” Kelly, Jr. The honor is awarded annually to an athlete, team, coach or official in recognition of an outstanding act of fair play and sportsmanship displayed during the past year.

Fair play can be described as an athlete who is dedicated to playing fair, obeys the rules, and upholds the spirit of the game. Sportsmanship is an athlete whose conduct and attitude demonstrate gracious behavior before, during, and after competition.

In addition to being a past president of the USOC, Kelly was an Olympic bronze medalist in single scull rowing in 1956 and an eight-time U.S. National Champion. He was awarded the James E. Sullivan Award for the top amateur U.S. athlete in 1947. He was the son of another famous Olympian, rowing triple gold medalist John B. Kelly, as well as brother to Princess Grace Kelly. Jack Kelly passed away in 1985.

Past Award Recipients

• 1985 Kandi Amelon and Alec Binnie; athletes, figure skating
• 1986 Judy Caunter; athlete, cycling
• 1987 Cleveland Stroud; high school coach, basketball
• 1988 Mike DeCicco; University of Notre Dame coach, fencing
• 1989 Richard A. Weiss; athlete, canoe/kayak
• 1990 Ashley Davenport, Tanya Giarnella, Maya Mylroie, Lexie Riley;
• U.S. Olympic Festival East Women's Road Team, cycling
• 1992 Michelle Manus; high school cross-country runner, track and field
• 1993 Cathy O'Brien; 1988 and 1992 Olympic marathoner, track and field
• 1994 Kristen Talbot; three-time Olympian (1984, 1988, 1994), speedskating
• 1995 *Fred Lebow; Former President and CEO of the New York Road Runners Club
• 1996 *Col. F. Don Miller; Former USOC Executive Director and USOF President
• 1996 *Scott Shipley; athlete, canoe/kayak
• 1997 Jackie Joyner-Kersee; four-time Olympian (1984, 1988, 1992, 1996), track and field
• 1998 Lance Armstrong; three-time Olympian (1992, 1996, 2000), cycling
• 1999 Michele Akers; 1996 Olympian, soccer
• 2003 Laura Kraut; two-time Olympian (1992, 2000), equestrian
• 2005 Erin Mirabella; two-time Olympian (2000, 2004), cycling
• 2006 Ash Nelson; 2006 Wisconsin state junior champion, curling
• 2008 Central Washington University Women’s Softball Team
• 2009 Regina Jaquess; athlete, water ski
• 2010 Steve Pupel; athlete, table tennis
• 2011 Jenna Huff; athlete, track and field
• 2012 Meghan Vogel; athlete, track and field
• 2013 Adam Krikorian; U.S. Olympic Women's Water Polo Team head coach
• 2014 Lucas Euser; athlete, cycling
• 2015 Miles Gould and Trey McDonald; athletes, archery
• 2016 Jim Eckford; athlete, track and field
• 2017 Abbey D’Agostino; 2016 Olympian, track and field
• 2018 Dr. Patricia DeLaMora, Ironman athlete
• 2019 May Tieu, 2018 Youth Olympian, fencing
• 2020 Maya Moore, two-time Olympian (2012, 2016), basketball
• 2022 Brittany Bowe, three-time Olympian (2014, 2018, 2022), speedskating
• 2023 Hunter Armstrong, Olympian (2020), swimming
• 2024 Simone Biles, three-time Olympian (2016, 2020, 2024) and Jordan Chiles, two-time Olympian (2020, 2024), artistic gymnastics

* Awarded posthumously

The Rings of Gold Awards, which are presented annually, recognize both an individual and a program dedicated to helping children develop their Olympic or Paralympic dreams and reach their highest athletic and personal potential.

Inaugurated in 1996, the Rings of Gold Awards highlight individuals and programs making a difference in the lives of children by bringing the Olympic Movement and its ideals to the playing field. The individual honor recognizes someone who has dedicated his/her life to helping young people achieve their highest athletic potential, while also assisting them in setting goals and establishing the mechanisms needed to achieve personal success on and off the field of play. The program award honors those programs committed to nurturing and developing the Olympic and Paralympic dreams and goals of children, teaching America’s youth valuable life skills, in addition to making a positive impact in their community.

Individual Criteria

• Honors an unsung hero involved with children and sport
• Exhibits commitment to the Olympic Movement
• Demonstrates values of Olympism
• Does not need to be awarded in same year of contributions

Program Criteria

• Recognizes a program grassroots in nature that introduces children to Olympic/Paralympic sport
• Demonstrates commitment to the Olympic Movement through sports programming
• Reaches a diverse population
• Incorporates the Olympic Ideals into program
• Does not need to be awarded in same year of program

Individual Recipients

• 1997 Al Mitchell, U.S. Olympic Education Center Boxing Coach
• 1998 Georgianna Buford, Mother of Tonya Buford-Bailey
• 1999 Walt Culbertson, John Muir H.S. Swimming/Water Polo Coach
• 2000 Richard Davis, Head Rowing Coach at St. Paul’s School
• 2001 Richard Quick, U.S. Olympic Women’s Swimming Coach
• 2002 Dorothy Baker, Delaware State Olympic Chairwoman
• 2002 Jean Lopez, Taekwondo Coach and Brother of Olympic Gold Medalist Steven Lopez
• 2003 Clair Young, Founding Member of Wolverine Sports Club
• 2010 Melissa Gregory, Olympic Figure Skater and Founder of Fever on Ice
• 2011 Wendy Hilliard, Founder of Wendy Hilliard Foundation
• 2012 George Block, former vice president and national team coach at USA Swimming
• 2013 Tamika Catchings, three-time Olympic champion and founder of Catch the Stars Foundation
• 2014 Kristi Yamaguchi, Olympic gold medalist and founder of the Always Dream Foundation
• 2015 Amy Purdy, 2014 Paralympic bronze medalist and founder of Adaptive Action Sports
• 2016 Glen Bennett, program coordinator for Michigan State University Demmer Shooting Sports, Education and Training Center
• 2017 Fred Zimny, U.S. junior national team coach at USA Luge
• 2018 Tracy Evans, three-time Olympian in freestyle skiing and founder of Kids Play International
• 2019 Connie Paraskevin, Connie Cycling Foundation
• 2020 Dr. Tekemia Dorsey, International Association of Black Triathletes
• 2022 Rowdy Gaines, three-time Olympic gold medalist and water safety advocate
• 2022 Melissa Stockwell, Paralympic bronze medalist and co-founder of Dare2tri
• 2023 Jackie Washington, Houston USOPA Chapter president
• 2024 Teresa Skinner, founder and executive director of ParaSport Spokane

Program Recipients

• 1997 “Dreams for Youth,” San Antonio Sports Foundation
• 1998 National Congress of State Games
• 1999 National Youth Sports Program
• 2000 Native American Sports Council
• 2001 Boys & Girls Clubs of America
• 2002 YMCA of the USA
• 2003 National Association of Police Athletic Leagues
• 2010 Make a Splash, USA Swimming Foundation
• 2011 Peter Westbrook Foundation
• 2012 Community Rowing, Inc.
• 2013 Lakeshore Foundation
• 2014 University of Central Oklahoma’s Endeavor Games
• 2015 Figure Skating In Harlem
• 2016 BlazeSports America
• 2017 BlazeSports America
• 2018 Game On! Sports 4 Girls
• 2019 The Hartford's Ability Equipped in partnership with Disabled Sports USA
• 2020 George Pocock Rowing Foundation’s Erg Ed
• 2022 Ready, Set, Gold!
• 2023 Exlpore Archery
• 2024 Move United Sanctioned Competition Series

The Olympic & Paralympic Torch Award is presented to an individual in recognition of outstanding service to the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic movements.

Now an annual honor, the award was first established in 1965. The recipient has made a positive impact on the Olympic and Paralympic movements in the United States and has made many contributions to promoting the Olympic and Paralympic ideals throughout the country.

Criteria

• Honors an individual
• Recognizes meaningful impact on U.S. Olympic and Paralympic movements
• Does not need to be awarded in same year of contributions

Recipients

• 1965 Avery Brundage, USOC President (1928-53)
• 1966 Kenneth L. Wilson, USOC President (1953-65)
• 1966 Asa S. Bushnell, USOC Officer
• 1966 R. Max Ritter, USOC Officer
• 1969 Douglas F. Roby, USOC President (1965-69)
• 1969 T. Nelson Metcalf, USOC Executive Board
• 1973 Clifford H. Buck, USOC President (1970-73)
• 1974 William E. Simon, USOC President (1981-85)
• 1977 Gerald Ford, U.S. President
• 1977 Philip O. Krumm, USOC President (1973-77)
• 1981 Robert J. Kane, USOC President (1977-81)
• 1985 Col. F. Don Miller, USOC Executive Director (1973-85)
• 1989 Edward J. Derwinski, Secretary-designate of Veterans Affairs
• 1990 Baaron Pittenger, USOC Executive Director
• 1996 Bonnie Blair, U.S. Olympic speedskating champion (1988, '92, '94)
• 2000 Bud Greenspan, Olympic filmmaker
• 2000 Dr. Evie G. Dennis, USOC Officer
• 2010 George E. Killian, USOC Board of Directors (1967-2003)
• 2011 Christy Halbert, Boxing Coach
• 2012 Micki King, vice president of the U.S. Olympians Association
• 2013 Dr. Evie Dennis, former vice president of the USOC and Amateur Athletic Union
• 2014 Willie Banks, former president and vice president of the USOPA
• 2015 Anne Warner Cribbs, former president and vice president of the USOPA
• 2016 Jim Easton, former IOC and USOC board member (1994-2015), and IOC Vice President (2002-06)
• 2017 Michael Lenard, former USOC vice president and 1984 Olympian (team handball)
• 2018 Michael Stephens, Lakeshore Foundation*
• 2019 Donna de Varona
• 2020 1980 U.S. Olympic Team
• 2022 Andras (Andy) Toro, four-time Olympian (canoe)
• 2023 Dave Ogrean, former USA Hockey executive director and USOPC board member
• 2024 SFC Elizabeth Marks, three-time Paralympian (2016, 2020, 2024)

*Awarded posthumously