“The team is everything.”
That’s Dr. Carolyn Savoy’s philosophy, and, with more than three decades’ experience of coaching a winning team, she may be on to something. On May 30th, it was announced that Dr. Savoy will be inducted into the builder category of the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame for her achievements and dedication as a basketball coach.
During her 32 years as the coach of the Dalhousie Women’s basketball team (1977-2009), Dr. Savoy led her team to 858 wins—the most in Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) history. Eleven of these wins were Atlantic University Sport (AUS) championships. Between 1979 and 1982, Dr. Savoy’s Tigers went on a winning streak of 49 consecutive AUS league games.
Sixteen of her players have been named All-Canadians and five have gone on to become members of the Canadian National team. Furthermore, Dr. Savoy’s team members have had a 100 per cent graduation record, which she finds “extremely rewarding.” “I’m not a maker of basketball players,” she says, “but a maker of people.”
Relationships are at the heart of the game
The five-time AUS Coach of the Year is honoured that so many female athletes have carried forward what she has taught them. Former Dalhousie Tiger Leah Girdwood says that she has transferred Dr. Savoy’s philosophy from basketball to real life. Ms. Girdwood who, along with her sister Laurie, was coached by Dr. Savoy for four years, says that Dr. Savoy always “stressed the importance of everyone working toward the same goal”— a useful tactic for any relationship.
Building a relationship is what Dr. Savoy believes to be the most important part of coaching. She has facilitated healthy relationship building in athletics by creating a successful mentorship program where mentors aid Dalhousie players in delivering presentations to high school teams. This leadership-oriented program is included in the stream of coaching courses that Dr. Savoy introduced to Dalhousie’s School of Health and Human Performance.
Besides serving as the President of the Dalhousie Faculty Association in 2000, Dr. Savoy is currently an associate professor in the School of Health and Human Performance, as well as a sport psychology consultant to the Dalhousie Women’s soccer team. She also coached field hockey at Dalhousie for two years.
Outside of Dal, Dr. Savoy was the guest coach with Basketball Canada for two decades, the 2001 Canada Games coach, and the president of Basketball Nova Scotia, among many other important and honourable positions. She has also offered valuable mentoring to dozens of men and women who now serve as coaches and assistant coaches.
Aside from earning a level-four coaching certification, Dr. Savoy graduated from the University of Tennessee with a PhD in Sport Psychology in 1992. She has written two books and numerous articles on coaching and sport psychology. Throughout her writing, Dr. Savoy indicates that team communication is huge, noting that “good (team) chemistry can move mountains.”
Once a Tiger, always a Tiger
According to Dr. Savoy, the coach-player relationship isn’t limited to the court, and she has always tried to support her players even after they have moved on from Dalhousie. “Once a Tiger, always a Tiger,” she says.
Similarly, Ms. Girdwood believes that Dr. Savoy “is a teacher and will always be a teacher.” Ms. Girdwood holds Dr. Savoy in very high regard and credits her coach with propelling her professional career into motion.
Dr. Savoy gives equal credit for her career to her team members, emphasizing that Dalhousie students, alumni, and sponsors have helped her get to where she is today. “The players are my legacy,” she adds.
Honour and humour will be paid to Dr. Savoy at a roast this Friday, June 3rd in order to raise money for a new endowment fund named the Dr. Carolyn Savoy Award of Excellence. The fund will be awarded to a women’s basketball athlete.
Dr. Savoy will be officially inducted into the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame on October 8. Dalhousie grad and curling star Colleen Jones will also be enshrined as part of the provincial Sport Hall this year, along with the rest of her 1999-2006 curling team.
LINK: Nova Scotia Sports Hall of Fame
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