Feb. 15, 2007

Washington, D.C. - Georgetown University sailing head coach Mike Callahan was the school's recipient of the OppenheimerFunds BIG EAST Coach's Achievement Award. The Coach's Achievement Award honors coaches at select BIG EAST member institutions for excellence in coaching, mentoring and community service.

"It is a privilege to be honored as the recipient of this award for Georgetown University," said Callahan. "Our sailing program has had a tremendous run of success over my time here. It is a testament to our student-athletes that I am able to receive this honor."

Callahan was acknowledged with the award during a halftime ceremony at the Georgetown's men's basketball game against West Virginia on Monday night at Verizon Center. As part of the presentation, OppenheimerFunds presented him with a $5,000 donation to the Georgetown University General Scholarship Fund.

Callahan was named head coach in August 1998, after a one year stint as an assistant coach and a four-year sailing career with the Hoyas. Since taking over the reins of the program, he has led Georgetown to two National Championships, winning the ICSA National Team Race Championship in 2001 and 2006. In addition to the national title last year, the Hoyas won the Leonard M Fowle Trophy as the national team of the year, and the women's and coed squads both were runners-up at their respective ICSA National Championships. Callahan also coached arguably the greatest college sailor ever, Andrew Campbell, who last year was the recipient of the Everett B. Morris Trophy, as national sailor of the year, and won his third ICSA Singlehanded National Championship. In his eight seasons at the helm, Callahan has coached 36 All-Americans and has earned the Georgetown University's Coaching Achievement Award on three occasions, including in 2006.