TARA (NOTT) CUNNINGHAM
1972-
Inducted – 2010
The first Kansan to bring home a medal during the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Tara Lee (Nott) Cunningham was a standout athlete in both weightlifting and soccer at the national and international level. Just 5-foot-1 and 105 pounds, Cunningham brought home the gold medal in the 48-kilogram class (women’s flyweight) after lifting more than twice her weight. A native of Stilwell, Cunningham also competed in the 2004 Olympics in Athens and finished 10th overall. Cunningham was an American record holder in two different weight classes and was honored with the establishment of the Tara Nott Award for the top female athlete of the year for USA Weightlifting. She was a two-time gold medalist in the Pan-American Games, a seven-time USAW national champion and eight-time World Team member. Cunningham was also highly successful as a soccer player. She was captain of the 1995 Olympic Sports Festival Team and was a member of Colorado College’s 1990 and ’91 Final Four teams. Cunningham was a four-time all-league and all-metro player for Blue Valley High in 1987-90. Inducted into the Colorado College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2001. Inducted into the Blue Valley High School Hall of Fame. Named the 2000 Citation Winner by the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame. Born: May 10, 1972 – Del Rio, Texas. Graduated: Blue Valley Stanley H.S., 1990; Colorado College, 1994.