CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – For the third year in a row, Carolina Athletics will honor pioneering former student-athletes with the Tar Heel Trailblazers award. This year’s honorees are Sharon Couch-Fikes and Phil Ford.
The award recognizes individuals who paved the way for success in all aspects of the student-athlete experience. The Trailblazers will be honored at halftime of the men’s basketball game on Feb. 20 vs. Miami and at a reception afterward.
Couch-Fikes, who competed for the Tar Heels in track and field from 1988-91, was the first African-American woman to win the prestigious Patterson Medal, the highest athletic award at UNC.