MADISON, Wis. – Wisconsin track and field and cross country legend Cathy Branta will be inducted into the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Collegiate Athlete Hall of Fame on June 8, 2025 at the Hult Center for Performing Arts. The ceremony precedes the 2025 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships which are set for June 11-14 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. Branta joins an elite group, including Badger Suzy Favor, who was a part of the inaugural class in 2022.
Branta's remarkable career at the UW set a lasting legacy not only for the Badgers, but also in collegiate athletics. A five-time national champion, she claimed titles twice in the 3000 meters outdoors and once each in cross country, the 3000 meters indoors and the 1500 meters outdoors. Her individual cross country championship win in 1984 propelled Wisconsin to its first NCAA cross country team title.
Branta set NCAA meet records in the 3000-meter run both indoors and outdoors as well as being an 11-time All-American and eight-time Big Ten champion. She represented the U.S. as an alternate in the 3000 meters on the 1984 Olympic team and won gold in the same event at both the 1985 World University Games and the Olympic Sports Festival. She continued to show dominance on the global stage, where her second-place finish at the 1984 World Cross Country Championships helped secure a team title for the U.S.
Beyond her exceptional athletics, Branta channeled her excellence into the classroom as well. She earned Academic All-Big Ten honors twice and was awarded the 1985 Big Ten Medal of Honor for her combined proficiency in scholarship and athletics.
Branta was a three-time UW Women's Athlete of the Year (1983-85), the Big Ten Women's Athlete of the Year her senior year in 1985 and received the prestigious 1985 Broderick Award in cross country. She also won the 1984-85 Honda Sports Award, recognizing the top women college athlete across 11 sports as well as being named to the Big Ten's All-Decade Team during the conference's 10-year celebration of women's athletics.
In 1993, Branta was inducted into the UW Athletic Hall of Fame and her induction into the USTFCCCA Collegiate Athlete of Fame further cements her status as one of the greatest athletes in UW history.
