Kay Yow Loses Cancer Battle
Legendary women's basketball coach Kay Yow lost her long battle with breast cancer on Saturday, January 24. Yow, in her 34th year of coaching at North Carolina State University, had battled breast cancer for more than 20 years.
Yow led her teams to 20 NCAA Tournaments, 11 trips to the Sweet 16, and a trip to the Elite Eight and Final Four in 1998. She was an Olympic Gold Medal head coach in 1988, NCAA® Elite Eight® and Women's Final Four® coach in 1998, Women's Basketball Hall of Fame inductee in 2000, as well as a Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame inductee in 2002.
Despite her exemplary accomplishments on the court, Yow was perhaps most known for her positive attitude about life and her intense interest in helping others. She won the inaugural Jimmy V ESPY for Perseverance at the 2007 ESPY Awards.
NAGWS Executive Director Pamela Noakes said, "I had the pleasure of meeting Coach Yow when NAGWS presented the 2007 Wade Trophy and I was touched. Although she was weakened by treatments, she took the time to shake hands and talk with each person waiting in a very long line to say hello. She thanked each person for their support, but then she looked deep into each person's eyes and sincerely asked how they were doing. A lot of people have accomplished a great deal in their lives, but Kay Yow was all about what she could do for you…her athletes, her peers and her family. Her lessons are priceless."
In December 2007, the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund in partnership with The V Foundation was established as a charitable organization committed to finding an answer in the fight against women's cancers. She was also involved in the creation of "Hoops 4 Hope", a basketball game centered around a cure for breast cancer. Many teams playing this weekend wore their pink uniforms in honor of Coach Yow.
Donations can be made to the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund at www.JimmyV.org, by calling 1-800-4JimmyV, or by mailing checks to the WBCA with attention Megan Smith at 4646 Lawrenceville Hwy. Lilburn, GA 30047. Visit the North Carolina State Athletics web site for more information on Coach Yow.