By USOC Media and Public Relations Division

Chicago, Ill. - Karch Kiraly, three-time U.S. Olympian in volleyball (1984, 1988 and 1996) and three-time gold medalist, leads the distinguished Class of 2008 that will be inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame Presented by Allstate. The induction ceremony will take place June 19 in Chicago. The U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame Class of 2008 is comprised of nine Olympians, one Paralympian, an Olympic Coach, Veteran, Team and Special Contributor.

Wrestler Bruce Baumgartner, athletics athlete Joan Benoit, figure skater Brian Boitano, boxer Oscar de La Hoya, equestrian J. Michael Plumb, basketball athlete David Robinson, swimmer Amy Van Dyken, shooter Lones W. Wigger, Jr. and Paralympic swimmer John Morgan will be inducted as individuals. Figure skating coach Carlo Fassi will be inducted in the Coach category along with Olympic figure skating gold medalist Carol Heiss Jenkins in the Veteran category. The members of the 1996 Women's Gymnastics Team - Amanda Borden, Amy Chow, Dominique Dawes, Shannon Miller, Dominique Moceanu, Jaycie Phelps and Kerri Strug - will also be honored in the Team category, as will legendary Hollywood producer Frank Marshall as the Special Contributor.

The U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, Presented by Allstate, an awards-show style ceremony for which Kleenex and AT&T are associate sponsors, will air in a nationally-televised broadcast this summer. Viewers of the induction ceremony will be treated to a compelling broadcast which will relive the moments that catapulted the Class of 2008 to U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame status. Additionally, viewers will enjoy inspiring stories and insights from the inductees as well as from family, friends and fellow competitors of the honored legends.

“The legacies and contributions of this year's honorees will now live forever as they join our country's greatest Olympians in the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame,” said Lisa Cochrane, vice president of marketing at Allstate. “As a sponsor of the Hall of Fame since its celebrated revitalization in 2004, Allstate is proud to help protect and preserve this important part of our identity and source of American pride.”

Beginning today, tickets to the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony can be purchased at www.usolympichalloffame.com.
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About the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame Class of 2008

Bruce Baumgartner is one of only eight U.S. Olympians to win medals in four different Olympiads. He won his first gold medal in wrestling at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. He went on to win a silver medal in 1988 and a gold medal in 1992. At the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta, Baumgartner was elected U.S. flag bearer and U.S. Olympic Team captain. In his last Olympic Games, Baumgartner won a bronze medal. In 2002, he was selected as a Distinguished Member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.

Joan Benoit paved her own path in 1984 at the first women's marathon event of the Olympic Games. Despite a knee injury 17 days before at the Olympic Trials, Benoit triumphed in front of the pack to bring home the first gold medal in the event. Benoit won the Boston Marathon three times and held an American record in marathon from 1985 to 2003. She also won the Falmouth Road Race six times (1976, 1978, 1981-1983, and 1985) breaking records on four of those occasions. In 1985, despite struggles, Benoit won the Chicago Marathon and received the James E. Sullivan Award as the top amateur athlete in the United States.

Brian Boitano, a three-time Olympian (1984, 1988 and 1994), four-time U.S. champion and two-time world champion, was the first American to land a triple Axel in competition In 1988, during the “Battle of the Brians” at the Olympic Winter Games in Calgary, Boitano entered the free skate in an essential tie with Canadian Brian Orser. Boitano skated a clean program landing eight triple jumps en route to Olympic