Former BYU women’s athletic director, head women’s volleyball coach and lifelong champion for women’s athletics Elaine Michaelis died Wednesday morning, the school shared in a statement.
She was 86.
“Elaine Michaelis was not only a pioneer in women’s athletics at BYU, but a pioneer in women’s athletics period,” BYU athletic director Tom Holmoe said in a statement. “The successes today in women’s sports at BYU would not be possible without Elaine’s tremendous love, commitment and advocacy that she spent her life building and strengthening. On top of her legendary athletic accomplishments, Elaine was a beautiful person and dear friend to many.”
The “godmother of BYU women’s athletics,” Michaelis served as head coach of four different women’s programs at BYU, totaling more than 70 collective seasons with women’s volleyball, basketball, field hockey and softball.
Her greatest success came in volleyball, where she led the Cougars for 44 seasons before retiring in 2002 without ever recording a single losing campaign. Michaelis won 886 matches and 23 conference titles, qualified for 30 national tournaments, produced 51 All-American selections, reached three Final Fours and retired as the second-winningest women’s volleyball coach in NCAA history.
She was inducted into the AVCA Hall of Fame in 2003 and had the Smith Fieldhouse floor named in her honor in 2005.
As BYU’s women’s athletic director from 1995 to 2004, Michaelis played a key role in adding women’s soccer as an official intercollegiate sport at BYU, helped to increase available scholarships for female athletes and helped pave the way for more extensive television coverage of women’s sports at BYU.
During her own college career at BYU, Michaelis played basketball, softball and volleyball from 1956 to 1960.
“Elaine Michaelis was an extraordinary coach, mentor, leader and friend,” BYU associate athletic director Liz Darger said in a statement. “Her pioneering efforts to advance and elevate women’s athletics at BYU laid a strong foundation and set in motion a legacy of excellence that continues to propel our programs forward. Elaine was a Christ-centered leader who dedicated her life to helping others realize their full divine potential. Her profound influence extended far beyond the BYU community, leaving a lasting impact on collegiate athletics as a whole.”
Amid a life of church service, Michaelis was part of the Young Women’s General Board 1971-73 and the General Church Activities Committee 1982-86.
She was inducted into the BYU Hall of Fame in 2008, having left arguably the greatest impact on Cougar women’s athletics of any individual.