    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2002, Book I)]
    [May 21, 2002]
    [Pages 833-835]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Honoring NCAA Champion Teams
    May 21, 2002

        The President. Welcome. Please be seated. It's a beautiful day to
    welcome a bunch of champs to the White House. I want to welcome you all;
    I want to welcome the teams. Thanks for coming.
        Thank you, Senators, for being here. I see Senator Dodd, Dayton. I--Senator

    [[Page 834]]

    Lieberman's on his way; I know that for
    a fact. I want to thank my friend Johnny Rowland, the Governor of Connecticut, here. He told me, he said,
    ``The Connecticut women's basketball team is pretty good this year.'' I
    said, ``Oh, yeah?'' He said, ``No, they're real good.'' And I said,
    ``Well, how good?'' He said, ``They're going to go undefeated.'' I said,
    ``Sure, Governor.'' Thanks for making me look bad, Johnny. [Laughter]
        Senator Wellstone, thanks for coming as
    well, honored you're here.
        I want to thank the representatives from the universities. My good
    friend Mark Yudof is here from the University
    of Minnesota. I want to thank Don Lucia as well,
    the head coach of the men's hockey team. I want to congratulate the
    Minnesota team; you won it in dramatic fashion. And you had to let down
    your--change your immigration laws to allow somebody from North Dakota
    to come in to score. [Laughter] But it was a great victory.
        I want to thank Kathryn Martin and
    Shannon Miller from the University of
    Minnesota-Duluth women's hockey team for coming back again. It is a
    repeat performance by a great group of athletes. I want to congratulate
    you all for winning it two years in a row.
        I want to thank and welcome Geno
    Aurinuma--is that right?
        Mr. Auriemma. Auriemma.
        The President. Auriemma. Okay, fine.
    [Laughter] I've never been too good in English. [Laughter] But he's a
    heck of a coach, however he says his name. [Laughter]
        I want to congratulate the UConn women's basketball team for an
    unbelievable season. It--what great athletes, and they were really fun
    to watch.
        And then, much to the delight of thousands of people around here,
    and many who work upstairs in the White House, the mighty Terps of
    Maryland are the NCAA champions. I want to congratulate Dan Mote, the president, and Gary Williams, the coach. You guys need to know that there was a lot of
    people that were stepping a little lighter in my family, as well as who
    work in this compound, when you won. It was a great feat in an
    unbelievably tough field. And so congratulations to you all.
        You've now got a--you showed some things that I think are important
    for our country, particularly at this time, that if you serve something
    greater than yourself, called a team, you can achieve great things. If
    you recognize that life is more than just an individual record, that if
    you recognize there are--something bigger than an individual
    accomplishment, you can win. You can win in a broader sense. And to me,
    that's what these championships mean.
        It's kind of what our country has got to do as well. If we serve
    something greater than materialism or self-absorption, we can do some
    great things as a country. Starting with loving our neighbor like we'd
    like to be loved ourselves, making sure the country is as hopeful and
    promising as it can possibly be.
        As well as the result of being champs--I mean big-time champs--
    you've now got a lot of people looking at you, a lot of kids wondering,
    how does a champ behave? What does a champ do when they win the crown?
    It's a great opportunity to set an example for other people, to help
    people understand they're responsible for the decisions they make in
    life. You have that chance right now as a champ.
        You've been champs on the field and on the courts and on the rinks.
    Now you can be champs off, and do your country a great service.
        It's my honor to welcome you all here. I love championship day at
    the White House. I love to be around success. I hope you cherish these
    memories in winning these great championships for a long time coming and
    use them as an opportunity to work to make your Nation the best it can
    possibly be.
        May God bless your talents, and may God bless America.

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    Note: The President spoke at 2 p.m. on the South Lawn at the White
    House. In his remarks, he referred to Mark Yudof, president, and Don
    Lucia, head men's ice hockey coach, University of Minnesota; Kathryn
    Martin, chancellor, and Shannon Miller, head women's ice hockey coach,
    University of Minnesota-Duluth; Geno Auriemma, head women's basketball
    coach, University of Connecticut; and Dan Mote, president, and Gary
    Williams, head men's basketball coach, University of Maryland. The
    President honored the University of Connecticut's women's basketball
    team, the University of Maryland's men's basketball team, the University
    of Minnesota's men's ice hockey team, and the University of Minnesota-
    Duluth's women's ice hockey team.