Remarks Honoring the 2001 NCAA Women’s Hockey Champion University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs,
June 25, 2001

Please be seated. Well, thank you very much. Welcome to the White House. Kathryn, thank you for coming and bringing this group of champs with you. It’s good to welcome the coach, the captain of the team, who I understand is the only senior on the team. I’d hate to be the opposition for the University of Minnesota Duluth next year. [Laughter]

It is my honor to welcome to the White House the Senators from the State of Minnesota: Senator Wellstone, welcome; and Senator Mark Dayton—many of you don’t know this, that he was a fine goalie when he played at Yale University. I know because I witnessed him in the nets. However, having seen some of the replays of the champions’ games, Mark, I’m afraid you couldn’t have stopped many of the shots coming from these champs. [Laughter]

It’s good to have the Members of the United States Congress here, too: Jim Oberstar, thank you for coming; and Jim Ramstad, thank you, sir. I appreciate you all being here.

It is my honor to welcome the first-ever team from the University of Minnesota Duluth to the White House. The mighty Bulldogs accomplished an extraordinary feat by winning the first NCAA women hockey championship in only the second season of their existence. That’s pretty darn good.

What makes this team special is its international character. Players from Europe, Canada, and the United States all worked together to become champs. As Coach Miller said, it took a perfect mix of players from all over to win the title. But I know something about sports; it also takes a great coach to win a title, too, and this team has got an extraordinary coach. She’s had great success with the Canadian national team, before our great Nation borrowed her to lead the Bulldogs. [Laughter] Her name is associated with a spectacular rise in women’s hockey. And she served as a role model for all the champs.

Coach Miller, congratulations.

I want to thank some of the girls from the Washington, DC, area who are here, as well. I see members of the Best Friends, Brownies, and Girl Scouts. Thank you for coming. It reminds me of what a true champ is. A champ is somebody who wins not only in the ice but who, when off the ice, sets a good example for youngsters to follow. What champs do is, they set high standards, and they work hard, and they make the right choices to achieve those standards and goals. And that’s exactly what the University of Minnesota Duluth did. You set the highest of standards.

I know you worked hard. I bet you made sure they worked hard. [Laughter] Your team made the right choices off the ice, and that’s why they’re champs. And so I want to congratulate you all for setting the right example.

For those of you who aren’t from the United States, hang around; it’s a pretty special place. [Laughter] But we welcome you here. We welcome you to the greatest house in our country, the people’s house, and congratulate you from the bottom of our hearts.

Congratulations.

Note: The President spoke at 4:45 p.m. in the East Room at the White House. In his remarks, he referred to Kathryn A. Martin, chancellor, Shannon Miller, women’s hockey coach, and Brittny Ralph, women’s hockey team captain, University of Minnesota Duluth.