FRANKLIN, TN (TSU News Service) — New Hope Academy recently celebrated the life of one of the top track and field coaches in the history of the sport by renaming the upper school wing to the Coach Edward S. Temple Upper School Wing.
TSU Director of Track and Field Chandra Cheeseborough-Guice was among those who attended the ceremony on Sept. 27 in Franklin, TN.
“He’s leaving a legacy, and I know that New Hope Academy was really dear to Coach Temple,” Cheeseborough-Guice said. “I’m excited to be part of it.”
Temple, who died last year at the age of 89, began working with New Hope Academy in 2010 until his passing. He coached the Tigerbelles from 1953 to 1994 and served as head coach of the U.S. Olympics women’s teams in 1960 and 1964 and assistant coach in 1980.
Temple coached his teams to more than 30 national titles and led 40 athletes to the Olympics. The famed Tigerbelles earned a total of 27 Olympic medals, 15 of which were gold.
New Hope Academy Headmaster Stuart Tutler also noted that all the Tigerbelles graduated and that many have master’s degrees and Ph.Ds., which he said “speaks volumes to what he instilled in them.”
“That’s the kind of drive I want in our students here at New Hope Academy,” Tutler said. “Coach came every year and he would talk to them about how important it was for them to take their time and learn and forget about every other distraction. It was very good for him to be here and for our kids to see that.”
Other attendees at the ceremony were Franklin Mayor Ken Moore, Coach Temple’s daughter Edwina Temple, and Tigerbelles Edith McGuire Duvall, Derica Dunn-Moody and Wyomia Tyus.
