Olympic medal roundup; Class of 2028 White Coat ceremony

August 13, 2024

A student strolls by the curved drain between Steinhaus and McGaugh halls. (Photo: Steve Zylius)

UC IRVINE NEWS

2024 Paris Olympics Anteater Medal Roundup

UC Irvine’s Kevin Tillie (top row, 5th from left, holding box) and French teammates celebrate their gold win. (Photo: Getty Images)

UC Irvine’s Kevin Tilly (top row, 5th from left, holding box) and French teammates celebrate their gold win. (Photo: Getty Images)

The 2024 Paris Olympic Games were a success for former UC Irvine men’s volleyball players Kevin Tillie and David Smith, who won gold and bronze medals, respectively. UC Irvine was one of 49 schools to win two or more medals in Paris and one of only two (Loyola Chicago) Division I schools that doesn't sponsor football in that group. The Big West was ranked the sixth best conference in total medals, with the Anteaters the only Big West school to win gold. Tillie and Team France won their second consecutive gold medal defeating Poland, the No. 1 ranked team in the world, 3-0. Tillie becomes just the second UC Irvine student to win two gold medals, joining Greg Louganis, who earned four career golds. Smith and the U.S. lost a heartbreaking five-set semifinal to Poland before capturing the bronze medal with a sweep of Italy. It is the second bronze medal for Smith who also earned one in Rio in 2016. UC Irvine student-athletes have claimed eight gold medals, 16 silver and three bronze all-time.

School of Medicine’s White Coat ceremony welcomes the Class of 2028

Dr. Michael Stamos, dean of the School of Medicine, presents their first physician’s white coat to all first-year UC Irvine medical students

On Aug. 9, the School of Medicine’s class of 2028 donned their first white coats in a ceremony at the Irvine Barclay Theatre, where 114 students celebrated this solemn, yet joyous rite of passage. More than 700 family, friends and loved ones cheered on the new doctors-in-training. Each student recited the Hippocratic Oath, committing themselves to the principles of the medical profession and received a pin from the Arnold P. Gold Foundation to seal their duty to providing excellent and compassionate healthcare. Classes for medical students started yesterday.

Dealing with anxiety during, after an earthquake

Earthquakes are unsettling experiences, especially for the first time. UCI Health psychiatrist Dr. John Luo spoke with Healio about strategies for coping with the anxiety temblors can produce.

#IamUCI

Advocating for greater library inclusion

Leialani Wihongi-Santos, library assistant with UCI Libraries Access Services

Leialani Wihongi-Santos, a library assistant with UCI Libraries Access Services, is an advocate for greater representation of the Pacific Islander community in the Asian Pacific American Librarians Association. In the wake of concern about inclusivity in APALA's Asian Pacific American Awards for Literature, the organization added a poetry category, separate awards and honors for the Asian American and Pacific Islander categories, and stepped up outreach efforts to Pacific Islander publishers. Wihongi-Santos recently discussed these milestones in LAist’s Inheriting podcast. And in an interview with UC Irvine Libraries, Wihongi-Santos elaborated on what they mean for the Pacific Islander community.

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