WEST LONG BRANCH, NJ – Former Monmouth University swimmer and Monmouth Athletics Hall of Famer Wendy Boglioli was recently inducted into the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2022.

Boglioli was inducted along with her Olympic teammates from the 1976 women's 4x100m freestyle swimming relay team, Kim Peyton, Jill Sterkel and Shirley Babashoff.

The U.S. women's 4x100m freestyle relay team at the 1976 Montreal Olympics is one of the biggest underdog stories in the sport's history. On the second leg, Boglioli produced the fastest split of her career by two seconds, going 55.81. Sterkel then split a 55.78, the fastest of any women in the field, on the third leg, giving U.S. anchor Babashoff the lead. She held on as the U.S. pulled off one of the greatest upsets in the history of swimming and set a world record by four seconds. The performance sparked the inspiration for the 2016 film, The Last Gold.

"I'm really just so excited to be in the Hall of Fame," Boglioli said. "It's been a long time coming and I'm just so appreciative for all the votes that we got. It's just a legacy that I can pass on to my kids and my grandkids.

"It's something that never has ever left me because it was the pinnacle of my Olympic swimming career. From the time that I was 8 years old, I wanted to be an Olympic swimmer, and not only an Olympic swimmer, an Olympic gold medalist."

The U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Hall of Fame Class of 2022 inductees includes Natalie Coughlin (swimming), Muffy Davis (Para alpine skiing and Para-cycling), Mia Hamm (soccer), David Kiley (Para alpine skiing, Para track and field, and wheelchair basketball), Michelle Kwan (figure skating), Michael Phelps (swimming), Lindsey Vonn (alpine skiing), Trischa Zorn-Hudson (Para swimming), the 1976 Women's 4×100 Freestyle Relay Swimming Team, the 2002 Paralympic Sled Hockey Team, Gretchen Fraser (legend: alpine skiing), Roger Kingdom (legend: track and field), Pat Summitt (coach: basketball) and Billie Jean King (special contributor).