The award recognizes women in sports who have achieved success while demonstrating a commitment to empowering younger generations.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The legendary University of Tennessee women’s basketball coach Pat Summitt has been named one of five recipients of the 2024-25 WeCOACH Lifetime Achievement Award.
The award recognizes women in sports who have achieved success while demonstrating a commitment to empowering younger generations.
“The Lifetime Achievement Award honors those who have not only excelled in their field but have also paved the way for future generations of leaders,” WeCOACH CEO Vanessa Fuchs said. “This year’s winners are true pioneers—individuals whose advocacy for women in coaching has broken barriers, records and created lasting change. Their unwavering dedication to excellence, empowerment, and inclusion is a beacon of inspiration. We are proud to celebrate their extraordinary contributions and the legacy they continue to build. WeCOACH could not be more thrilled to bestow upon them our highest honor, the Lifetime Achievement Award.”
Summitt, who passed away in 2016, led the Lady Vols for 38 years—amassing 1,098 career wins and eight NCAA Championships. Her teams made 31 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances and won 32 combined SEC regular season and tournament titles.
Under Summitt’s guidance, Tennessee produced 14 Olympic Team members and 34 WNBA players. She maintained a 100% graduation rate for players completing their eligibility.
“As a coach, mentor, mother-figure, ambassador, trailblazer and role model, Pat Summitt was a living torchbearer,” Tennessee Athletics said. “Hers is a light that also cannot be extinguished.”
Summitt’s large list of accolades includes being named Naismith Women’s Collegiate Coach of the Century for the 1900s and National Coach of the Year eight times. She was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame.
Following her 2011 diagnosis of early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, Summitt established the Pat Summitt Foundation to raise awareness about the condition. She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama and the Arthur Ashe Courage Award.
Other recipients of this year’s award include Jan Hutchinson, Carmen Jackson, Dr. Ann Lebedeff and Tara VanDerveer.
