Golder, Burns Honored with Coach of the Year Awards
4/21/1999 12:00:00 AM | Men's Gymnastics
LINCOLN, Neb. -- Kurt Golder and Mike Burns, architects of the men's gymnastics resurgence at the University of Michigan, were honored for their coaching achievements Wednesday (April 21) at the NCAA/NACGC Banquet at the Cornhusker Hotel on the eve of the 1999 NCAA Championships.
Golder, the third-year Wolverine head coach, was named Midwest Regional Coach of the Year, while Burns, in his second year as U-M assistant coach, received the National Assistant Coach of the Year award.
During the breakthrough 1999 season, Golder and Burns guided Michigan to its first Big Ten Conference championship since 1975, marking the Wolverines' first league finish higher than fifth place since 1980 (third). Michigan, which held the top spot in the last two GymInfo national rankings of the regular season, placed second in the East Regional to reach the NCAA Championships for the first time since 1975 as well.
"I appreciate being honored with such an award," Golder remarked. "It is thrilling to be recognized as a leader of a team with such dedication and work ethic. Winning the Big Ten Coach of the Year meant so much as an honor from my colleagues and fellow coaches in the conference, and this, too, I couldn't have received without such a great assistant coach and team."
Golder recruited Burns from coaching junior gymnastics in New Mexico two years ago. "I knew what an asset Mike would be to the Michigan program from our years of working together at Iowa," Golder said. "He has a strong impact on the team."
The Wolverines will compete in the NCAA Championships Thursday through Saturday (April 22-24) at the Bob Devaney Sports Center on the University of Nebraska campus. Michigan is looking for its third men's gymnastics national title and first since 1970.
