The Mount Rushmore of Arizona Wildcats women’s Olympic sports athletes

Brigetta Barrett, Amanda Beard, Annika Sörenstam and Heidi Hornbeek come from different backgrounds, but they are all connected by one common string.

These women were University of Arizona athletes who took their respective sports by storm, leaving an undeniable impact on the university’s Olympic sports programs.

They set UA records and broke them.

They became champions at the conference and national level.

They received national awards and recognitions.

Some became Olympians.

All were dedicated to becoming the best of the best.

Here’s how these athletes jumped, swam, swung and soared their way into our women’s Olympic sports Mount Rushmore and UA history.

Brigetta Barrett, track and field

Years at Arizona: 2009-13

What she did: If you were to look at the Arizona women’s track and field record book, you would see one name repeated throughout all 46 pages: Brigetta Barrett. Barrett, who now goes by Beloved Promise, set the bar high for Arizona track and field — literally. Throughout her time as a Wildcat high jumper, she was an eight-time All-American, six-time national champion, multiple conference champion, two-time Pac-12 Field Athlete of the Year and a Pac-12 Woman of the Year.

She was also a finalist for the Bowerman Award, the top award in collegiate track and field, in 2012 and 2013.

As a Wildcat, Barrett broke more program high jump records than you can count on one hand.

And she still holds the school record for high jump with a mark of 6-5.5 (1.97 m). She set the record in 2012, which became a huge year for Barrett.

In 2012, she joined Team USA and became an Olympian after competing in the London Olympic Games, where she took home the silver medal in the high jump.

She became the first UA track and field Olympian since 1992.

She set UA’s outdoor high jump record in 2012, too, after completing a jump of 6-8 (2.03 m) in London.

“I put my foot down and closed my eyes and when I hit that mat without hitting the bar, I was like ‘Thank you, Jesus,’” Barrett told reporters after her Olympics performance.

Barrett took home a couple of gold medals at world championships, as well. She won gold at the 2011 Universiade and the 2013 World Championships.

A decade after she departed from the university, Barrett was inducted into the UA Sports Hall of Fame.

Just as Barrett jumped her way into Arizona sports history, she jumped right into our Mount Rushmore of all-time greatest women's Olympic sports athletes.

Amanda Beard, swim

Years at Arizona: 2000-01

What she did: Before Amanda Beard joined the UA swim team in the early 2000s, she had already made a name for herself.

Just a few years earlier, at age 14, she had won three Olympic medals at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. She won gold in the 4x100m medley and silver in the 100 and 200m breaststroke.

She only added to her achievements during her time at Arizona.

As a Wildcat, she was a 10-time All-American, a national champion and a record-setter. She was also a part of the 1999-2000 swim team that won the Pac-10 Women's Swimming and Diving Championship.

After college, Beard continued her professional swimming career and competed in world and Pan Pacific championships, winning several gold and silver medals.

By the end of her professional swimming career, Beard competed in four Olympics, earning seven medals, including two gold.

She is now considered one of the most decorated swimmers in UA history.

Because of her achievements in the water, Beard was inducted into the UA Sports Hall of Fame in 2008 and the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 2018.

After years of competing (and winning) around the world, swimming brought her back to the Old Pueblo once again.

Beard was hired as an assistant swim coach at the university in 2023.

“I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to join the University of Arizona Swimming & Diving family,” Beard said in an UA press release. “It is an honor to be invited back into a program that was home to me and helped me during a very important part of my career. I know the dedication and hard work it takes to achieve success in the pool and I am excited to share my knowledge with the swimmers at Arizona.”

Annika Sörenstam, golf

Years at Arizona: 1991-92

What she did: In the early ‘90s, Annika Sörenstam took a chance on the UA.

She had never been to Tucson before, but she decided if she didn’t like it, she could always go back home to Sweden.

She ended up staying two years.

“Right here (Omni Tucson National Resort) was my first stop when I got to Tucson. But it was in August, and you can imagine it was a little hot,” she told the Star a few years ago. “I’ve never experienced heat like that. But I stayed in one of the rooms … right by the range. I told them I was 19, then I get here in the dark and after a long travel day, I went to sleep. I woke up and open the blinds and there was a range and … I was blown away. I mean I really had this type of beautiful resort before and I was like, ‘Wow! This is a good start to college life.’”

In her two years in Tucson, Sörenstam won the NCAA Individual Championship and Pac-10 title, earning her All-American and National Player of the Year honors.

Much like Jim Furyk on our men’s Mount Rushmore, playing for Arizona helped catapult them into greatness in the golf world.

After deciding to continue her professional career, Sörenstam joined the LPGA Tour in 1994, where she saw even more success.

On the LPGA Tour, she secured 10 major wins, including three Women’s PGA Championships, three U.S. Women’s Open titles and the Women’s British Open. She’s currently tied for fourth with 10 major wins on the LPGA.

Overall, she has 72 wins on the tour.

Not to mention the numerous awards and recognitions she’s taken home over the years. While we can’t fit all of them in this story, here are a few of the notable ones: LPGA Rookie of the Year award, eight LPGA Player of the Year titles, several ESPY awards and a handful of AP Female Athlete of the Year titles.

If those weren’t enough, she added the Presidential Medal of Freedom to her trophy case in 2021.

Because of her success on the course, Sörenstam was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2003. Back here in Tucson, she was inducted into the UA Sports Hall of Fame in 1999.

Sörenstam became one of the all-time best female golfers, not just at Arizona, but in the world.

Heidi Hornbeek, gymnastics

Years at Arizona: 1996-2000

What she did: Heidi Hornbeek’s leotard from her days as a GymCat is the only gymnastics leotard retired in McKale Center, and for good reason.

Hornbeek is one of two NCAA gymnastics champions (floor exercise, 1996) in program history.

She won three Pac-10 championships in balance beam, floor exercise and the all-around.

She was a recipient of the most prestigious collegiate gymnastics award in the country, the AAI Award.

She was a seven-time All-Pac-10 selection and six-time All-American.

Hornbeek is one of three GymCats who earned a perfect 10 on floor exercise and one of four who scored a 10 in the vault. And in the all-around, she currently holds the third-highest score in program history with a 39.700.

“During workouts, I try to be perfect, and I always try to make everything I do perfect,” Hornbeek told the Star during her freshman season. “It’s hard. But I’m having fun and I’m enjoying it.”

Hornbeek was inducted into the UA Sports Hall of Fame in 2005, alongside some other big names like Ryk Neethling and Miles Simon.

After her time at Arizona came to a close, Hornbeek became a doctor and practiced medicine, something she had always aspired to do.

She died in 2013 at 36.

Although Hornbeek is no longer here to see the impact she’s continued to have on UA women’s gymnastics, her legacy will always have a home at McKale Center.