GREENSBORO - Fourteen new members, including Guilford County's first Olympic gold medal winner, have been named to the Guilford County Sports Hall of Fame in the Class of 2011 announced Thursday.
The Guilford County HOF was created in 2005 and the new members bring the total to 78.
The 2011 class consists of former athletes, coaches and administrators. Topping the list of athletes is Joey Cheek, the speed skater who won the gold medal in the 500 meters in the 2006 Winter Olympics.
Other former athletes to be inducted are Tripp Welborne (Page High School and Michigan football), Maurice Spencer (Page, N.C. Central and New Orleans Saints football), Eddie Pope (Southwest Guilford, North Carolina and U.S. National soccer), Angie Polk-Jones (UNCG basketball) and Tommy Langley (amateur golf).
The coaches are Freddy Johnson (Greensboro Day School boys' basketball), Herb Goins (High Point Andrews football) and Chuck Hartman (High Point College baseball).
The administrators are Bradley Faircloth (college official and ACC Supervisor of Football Officials) and Eddie Bridges (wildlife conservationist).
The first five classes included deceased inductees. Last year, a Legends Class was created for posthumous honors. Three inductees join the HOF on this basis in 2011 - amateur golfer Larry Dempsey and former high school coaches Claude Manzi and John Morris.
All members of the class will be formally presented at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at the Greensboro Grasshoppers game at NewBridge Bank Park. They will be inducted at a banquet on Sept. 19 at 6:30 p.m. at the Greensboro Coliseum.
Demp Bradford/Greensboro Sports Commission