Hardt honored as Georgia Woman of the Year

The honors continue for Carson High graduate Julie Hardt as she's about to receive the most prestigious award presented to a female athlete in the state of Georgia.

The former All-American for the University of Georgia women's swim team has been selected as the Georgia Commission on Women's Sports Sportswoman of the Year.

Hardt, a 2000 CHS graduate who swam at Georgia from 2001-2004, will be honored today at the 2005 National Girls and Women's Sports Day awards banquet at the Crown Plaza-Airport in Atlanta.

The Sportswoman of the Year award is given annually by the Georgia Women's Intersport Network to a female over the age of 18 who has represented her sport through performance, leadership and community service. Phyllis Tuggle of the AtlantaTrack Club was last year's recipient.

The Georgia Women's Intersport Network, known as GA-WIN, is in its 19th year of service. The organization works to enhance the visibility of girls and women's athletics as well as increase public awareness of Title IX.

"This is a well deserved and gigantic honor for Julie, our program and the University of Georgia," Georgia swim coach Jack Bauerle said. "She continues the tradition of outstanding student-athletes in our women's program that have won NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships, NCAA Woman of the Year awards and now this. We are proud of her and for everything she stands for."

Last fall Hardt was named an NCAA Woman of the Year Finalist, one of 10 female athletes in the country to be honored. She also received the NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship, the most prestigious award presented by the NCAA to student-athletes for postgraduate studies.

"None of this came easy, which makes this an even more important award," Bauerle said. "She has worked as hard as possible in the classroom and the pool."

Hardt was an eight-time All-American and earned honorable mention All-America accolades five times. She was a member of the 2001 NCAA-winning 800-yard freestyle relay. She helped lead the Lady Bulldogs to the 2001 NCAA team title and three runner-up finishes (2002-04), while finishing in the top three at the SEC Championships each year. Hardt also earned a gold medal as part of the U.S. 800-meter freestyle relay at the 2001 FINA World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan.

Hardt, the daughter of Christopher and Adrienne Hardt, has been equally successful in the classroom, as she currently maintains a 3.8 grade point average and is expected to graduate in May 2005 with a degree in exercise science and psychology. She has been a member of the Presidential Scholar (4.0 term G.P.A.) or the Dean's List (3.5 term G.P.A.) every semester at Georgia. She is member of the Golden Key and National Society of Collegiate Scholars and is a three-time member of both the SEC Academic Honor Roll and the College Swim Coaches Association All-Academic Team.

Hardt's volunteer work while at Georgia includes the Athens Mentoring Program, St. Mary's Hospital, Hero to the Hedges, Adopt-A-Family, the Athens Food Bank, Catch the Spirit swim camp, Toys for Tots and the Habitat for Humanity Women's Build.