Former Olympian Named Husker Rifle Coach

Lincoln - Olympic Gold Medalist Launi Meili (pronounced LAWN-ee MY-lee) has been hired as the new rifle coach Nebraska Director of Athletics Bill Byrne announced Tuesday. Meili will begin duties on July 2. She replaces Karen Anthony, who resigned to pursue interests in the private sector.

"We are very pleased to have Launi join our staff," Byrne said. "Her educational background and Olympic experience will enable us to carry on the tradition of rifle excellence that Karen Anthony established in her four years here. I am confident that Launi will provide the expertise to keep our rifle program among the nation's elite."

Meili retired from competitive shooting in 1992 and has spent the last 10 years coaching junior and elite level shooters and working at shooting clinics and camps nationwide. She was an assistant coach for the U.S. National Team from 1997-2000 and received her Master?s degree in sports psychology from the University of Idaho in 2001. A member of the USA Shooting Board of Directors, Meili created the International Coach Certification Program, the highest level of coaching credential recognized by USA Shooting and the National Rifle Association.

Meili's background in rifle as a competitor, consultant and trainer has prepared her for a career in collegiate athletics.

"I am proud and excited to join the Nebraska staff," Meili said. "It has always been my goal to work for a quality program like Nebraska. The positive atmosphere is evident and everything is in place here for the student-athlete to excel. I believe this program provides student-athletes the tools necessary to succeed academically and athletically in order to reach their full potential."

A three-time U.S. Olympic Committee Athlete of the Year in shooting, Meili won the gold medal in the women?s three-position smallbore rifle at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona setting two Olympic records, and is the only American woman to win gold in smallbore. She also placed 11th in air rifle in Barcelona after finishing sixth in air rifle and seventh in three-position rifle at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul. She remains the only woman to compete in both events at two Olympics. A seven-time national champion in three-position rifle, Meili set three world shooting records and numerous national records in her outstanding shooting career.

A graduate of Eastern Washington University where she earned a bachelor of arts degree in nutrition and exercise physiology, Meili helped the rifle team to a seventh-place finish at the 1983 NCAA Championships. She was named an NRA All-American in air rifle in 1984 before capturing All-America honors in both air and smallbore rifle in 1985.

A native of Spokane, Wa., Meili married Kevin Geddes in November 2000. Geddes is currently the assistant cross country and track and field coach at Cal State Dominguez Hills. He is also a high school physical education teacher at the California Academy of Mathematics and Science.

Meili is the second Olympic gold medallist to join the Husker coaching staff under Byrne. Husker swimming and diving coach Pablo Morales also competed in Barcelona in 1992 winning gold in the 100-meter butterfly, adding to the gold and two silvers he won in Los Angeles in 1984.