Usoc Selects Swimmer Van Dyken Sportswoman Of Year

When Amy Van Dyken looks in the mirror, she still sees the gangly girl who was a “first-class dork” back at Cherry Creek High School near Denver.

There’s some big differences, though - a record clutch of gold medals and the inner strength that comes with being the nation’s top female Olympic athlete.

Weird old Amy is now queen of the class. And what a class it is.

“There’s a lot of that same person,” Van Dyken said. “But I have a lot more self-confidence. A lot has changed.”

Capping a year in which she became the first U.S. woman to win four gold medals in a single Games, the 23-year-old swimmer was named Tuesday as the Sportswoman of 1996 by the U.S. Olympic Committee.

Van Dyken received 48 first-place votes and a total of 848 points in balloting by USOC officials, athletes and reporters. Dot Richardson, shortstop of the gold-medal women’s softball team, was second with 637 points and 12 first-place votes, followed by 100-meter champion Gail Devers, gold-medal soccer team star Mia Hamm and gymnast Shannon Miller, who won gold medals in the team and individual beam events.