Hong Kong’s Siobhan Haughey awarded ‘highest honour’ by University of Michigan after Big Ten heroics
- Haughey becomes one of just three Michigan swimmers to receive honour
- The 21-year-old set a new Hong Kong record last week
The Olympian received the Big Ten Medal of Honour at the University of Michigan’s annual Student-Athlete Recognition Celebration on Monday evening.
Each Big Ten member institution awards medals to one male and one female student at the end of each academic year.
“I’m extremely honoured to receive this award because only one male and one female at Michigan can receive it every year. You really have to be the best of the best,” said Haughey. “I came to Michigan because of its culture of being excellent, and I aspired to become the best. Throughout my four years here I worked hard to achieve my goals, both in the pool and in the classroom. It certainly wasn’t easy but I had a lot of help along the way.”
Haughey became one of just 1,300 honorees in the US to receive the award since it was established in 1915, and only the third athlete from Michigan’s swimming and diving programme to earn the honour.
“This award recognises all the effort I put in and all the sacrifices I made in the past years,” she said. “I hope I’ll be able to inspire other student athletes, and let them know that it is possible to excel in school and in sports.”
Haughey was credited with a dramatic turnaround in the Michigan swimming team’s fortunes during her time at the university and helped the institution to three consecutive Big Ten titles between 2016 and 2018, as well as record back-to-back top-four finishes at the NCAA Championships.
She was also hugely decorated on an individual level during her college career becoming a 15-time Big Ten champion, earning 14 CSCAA (College Swimming Coaches Association of America) All-American nods as well as 11 CSCAA All-America Honourable Mentions.
She also set a number of national and university records during her time in Michigan, notably in the 100-metre freestyle, 200m freestyle and 200m individual medley disciplines.
The programme in Michigan has made me a better swimmer
In recent years she has gone from strength to strength on the international stage also. Haughey reached the semi-finals of the 200m freestyle at the Rio 2016 Olympics, and the final in the same event at the 2017 World Championships.
After competing in last week’s Festival of Sport Time Trial at the Sports Institute in Fo Tan, Haughey praised the Michigan training programme.
“The programme in Michigan has made me a better swimmer,” she said. “In fact, I only found out what professional training looks like after arriving in the States. The training intensity is much higher and all the team members are looking to progress, and pushing each other for better performances.”
She also revealed she would be staying in Michigan to prepare for the World Championships and the Olympic Games.
