Pittsburg Olympic gold medalist Eddie Hart to be inducted into Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame

Joins Class of 2026 including Brandon Crawford, Missy Franklin, Jesse Sapolu and Coach Jack Clark

Enshrinement Dinner in San Francisco May 14, 2026

By Anne Cribbs, President & CEO, Bay Area Sports Organizing Committee

The Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame (BASHOF) Class of 2026 Enshrinement Dinner, presented in part by KNBR 680 AM, will be held on Thursday, May 14 at the Hyatt Regency Embarcadero in San Francisco. The terrific Class of 2026 inductees include, Eddie Hart (Track & Field), Brandon Crawford (Baseball), Missy Franklin (Swimming) and Jesse Sapolu (Football) and Coach Jack Clark (Rugby).

A portion of the proceeds from the dinner will benefit Special Olympics Northern California.

“The 2026 class of the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame features five extremely worthy individuals who have made a tremendous impact in their sport and in our region,” said Mario Alioto, Board Chair of BASHOF. “It’s a distinguished group that features Super Bowl and World Series Champions, Olympic Gold medalists, and NCAA National Champions and we are thrilled for them to take their rightful place among the other legends enshrined in the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame.”

Eddie Hart: A native of Pittsburg, CA, he is an Olympic gold medalist, Olympic Trials champion, two-time world record holder and Olympic record holder.

According to his bio on the BASHOP website, Olympic gold medalist and “World’s Fastest Human”, Hart is renowned for both his athletic excellence and his lifelong dedication to serving East Bay youth. The favorite to win the 100-meter gold medal at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games, Hart had equaled the world record of 9.9 seconds at the U.S. Olympic Trials. Despite being disqualified from his signature event due to an unfortunate coaching scheduling error, he displayed remarkable resilience and character by returning to anchor the U.S. Men’s 4×100-meter relay team, securing Olympic gold in world-record time.

Hart won state titles in the 100- and 200-yard events at Contra Costa College and later captured NCAA titles in the 100-yard dash and 4×110-yard relay while competing for the University of California, Berkeley. Ranked among the top 10 U.S. sprinters five times between 1970 and 1979, he was inducted into the UC Berkeley Hall of Fame in 1988 and will enter the Bob Hayes Hall of Fame later this year.

Hart’s rise began at Pittsburg High and Contra Costa College, where he won the 100-and 200-yard dashes at the California Junior College State Meet. He later transferred to the University of California, Berkeley, where he captured NCAA titles in the 100-yard dash and the 4×110-Yard relay in 1970. His achievements alongside teammate Isaac Curtis remain a historic chapter in Cal track and field history After retiring from open competition, Hart returned to the sport in the master’s division, winning world championships in both the 100 and 200 meters.

His world record in the 100 meters stood for 14 years.

Born in Martinez and raised in Pittsburg, California, Hart co-founded the Eddie Hart All In One Foundation in 2003 with his wife Gwen and son Eddie Jr., mentoring disadvantaged youth through sports, music, and education. In 2024, he was honored as a Hometown Hero by the City of Pittsburg. Eddie and Gwen have been married for fifty-two years. He is the proud father of Paris and Eddie, Jr., and the grandfather of Eddie III, James and Bella.

His autobiography about his experience at the 1972 Olympics, co-authored by former Bay Area sports reporter Dave Newhouse, is entitled Disqualified.

Brandon Crawford: 2x San Francisco Giants World Series Champion (2012, 2014); 3x MLB All-Star (2015, 2018, 2021); 4x Gold Glove (2015, 2016, 2017, 2021); 2015 Silver Slugger Award; 2x Wilson Defensive Player of the Year Award winner (2012 and 2016); 2017 World Baseball Classic Gold Medal; 2016 Willie Mac Award; Bay Area native played more games at shortstop than any player in Giants history and the seventh-most games played for the franchise overall; 6th player in MLB history to hit a grand slam in his first MLB game (2011), and the first shortstop to hit a grand slam in an MLB postseason game (2014)

Missy Franklin: 28x medal winner in swimming including 5x Olympic Gold, one Olympic bronze; 11x Gold at the World Championships; USA Swimming and FINA Swimmer of the Year (2011, 2012); At University of California, Berkeley, captured 2015 NCAA Women’s Division I Swimming and Diving Team Championship; 7x individual NCAA champion; 2015 Collegiate Woman of the Year and Honda Sports Award as the nation’s top female swimmer; Inducted International Swimming Hall of Fame (2023)

Jesse Sapolu: 4x Super Bowl Champion with the San Francisco 49ers (1984, 1988, 1989, 1994); 2x Pro Bowl selection; NFL All Pro at center and guard (1994, 1995); 13 NFL seasons with San Francisco; 10th all-time in games played for the 49ers; 2nd in franchise history with 22 playoff games; Ed Block Courage Award (1997); Bobb McKittrick Award (1991, 1996); California Sports Hall of Fame (2025)

Jack Clark: Currently in his 43rd season as head coach of men’s rugby at University of California, Berkeley; Has led Cal to 30 National Championships (25x National 15s Championships, 5x National 7s Championships) and produced 157 All-Americans; Head coach of the USA National Team (1993-99) and GM from 1993-2003; Craig Sweeney Award recipient for major contributions to the sport in 2001; 2014 inductee U.S. Rugby Hall of Fame; 2016 Glenn T. Seaborg Award recipient and member of the Cal Athletics Hall of Fame.

Tickets for the dinner are $375 per person or $5,500 for a table of 10 and available at Purchase Tickets – Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame.

For information on details for the 2026 BASHOF dinner and induction ceremony, please visit bashof.org.

About BASHOF

The Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that was founded in 1979 by Lou Spadia, former president of the San Francisco 49ers. Spadia had long dreamed of a Hall of Fame to honor the Bay Area’s athletic legends which simultaneously raised funds to help kids play sports.

The Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame, which is supported by its Champions Circle sponsors including Bay FC, the Golden State Warriors, San Francisco 49ers, San Francisco Giants and San Jose Sharks, has previously enshrined more than 200 outstanding athletes and individuals and donated more than $4 million to youth organizations in our local Bay Area communities.

About Special Olympics Northern California

Special Olympics Northern California (SONC) enriches the lives of children and adults with intellectual disabilities through sports, health, leadership and inclusive school programs. The 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization offers free year-round programming in 44 counties across Northern California, empowering athletes to be their best both on and off the field. More information is available at SONC.org.

Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.