In her five decades at Temple University, former women’s fencing coach Dr. Nikki Franke broke barriers and built opportunities for future generations.

The New York native, who has been selected as the recipient of the 2026 Pat Summit Award, didn’t pick up the sport of fencing until it was introduced to her during her senior year of high school. 

“Fencing changed my life from that moment on,” Franke told CBS News Philadelphia.

Falling in love with the foil, Franke pursued collegiate fencing, became a Brooklyn College Hall of Famer, and competed in the 1976 and 1980 Olympic Games.

“A dream come true,” Franke said. “I hadn’t thought about it. I just fenced because I enjoyed it. You meet athletes from all over the world, idols of yours.” 

While pursuing a masters at Temple and teaching fencing classes, she noticed the Owls had a men’s fencing team, but only a women’s club.

Franke formed the first Temple women’s team and became the head coach in 1972 at only 21 years old. She described her first year as a hectic one, pulling athletes from numerous sports. 

“We taught people from scratch who never fenced before,” she said. “‘Oh, you look like you know your right hand from next, so come, learn a new sport.’ My first All American was a field hockey player.”

Franke led Temple’s fencing program for 50 years, during which it was often ranked in the top 10. She coached 25 Temple fencers to a combined 35 All American selections, and 37 of her fencers earned a combined 66 appearances at the NCAA fencing championships. 

She was a four-time U.S. Fencing Coaches Association coach of the year and accumulated 898 career wins, making her the winningest women’s coach in Temple’s history.

“Just knowing that I had something to do with the growth and development of young women and their commitment to their community,” Franke said of her decades in coaching.

Franke also co-founded the Black Women in Sport Foundation.

“We try to expose inner-city youth to non-traditional sports – things they won’t see in their schools. If they don’t get exposed, they don’t know what they can do,” Franke said.

If you know of an athlete or coach that you want to see on Hometown Hustle, you can email Krystle Rich at hometownhustle@cbs.com.

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