For five decades, Dr. Nikki Franke stood as a consistent presence for Temple University’s women’s fencing team, writes Krystle Rich for CBS News Philadelphia.
While she retired from her longtime post in 2022, she is still praised as someone who broke barriers and created opportunities for generations after her.
Franke became introduced to fencing while a senior in high school. She credits the sport for changing her life from that point on.
Franke then went on to pursue collegiate fencing at Brooklyn College, where she became a Hall of Famer. She even competed in the 1976 and 1980 Olympics, respectively.
“A dream come true,” Franke said of the honor. “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 Franke was pursuing her masters degree at Temple, she noticed there wasn’t a women’s fencing team, but just a club.
In 1972 at 21 years old, she formed Temple’s first women’s team and served as its first coach.
From that point on, Franke became one of the key faces in aiding young women’s growth and development in sports.
She is the 2026 recipient of the Pat Summit Award for that very reason.
Read more about Dr. Nikki Franke and her five-decade-long legacy in coaching and women’s fencing at CBS News Philadelphia.
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