Jeffrey D. McLaughlin has been elected to the Hall of Fame for his accomplishments in the sport of rowing.
McLaughlin, a former Herbert W. Gallagher Award winner at Northeaster, evolved from the University's Freshman Oarsman of the Year in 1985 into a competitor of intercollegiate, international, and Olympic acclaim. As a senior in 1988, McLaughlin capped a brilliant NU career when he helped the Huskies capture the Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championship, one of the most prestigious championships in collegiate crew. The victory qualified the NU eight for the National Championship in Cincinnati, where they finished second.
After garnering outstanding rookie honors, he made the first varsity boat as a sophomore, as a junior was selected as the team's Outstanding Varsity Oarsman. In the summer of 1987, he was a member of the boat that won a gold at the World Championships in Denmark. The next spring, under McLaughlin's leadership, Northeastern won its first ever IRA title. Next up for McLaughlin were the Olympic trials, where he nailed down the six seat and a bronze medal for the US eight in Seoul. Back at NU in 1989, McLaughlin earned the Gallagher Award as the University's Outstanding student/athlete. After graduation, he was part of National Championships in both men's eight and men's four-without coxswain at the 1990 U.S. National Championships, and enjoyed similar success at the Goodwill Games. In 1991, he won a silver medal in the World Championships four-without competition in Vienna. Following the 1992 Olympics, where he won a bronze medal, his teammates voted him "1992 Athlete of the Year," and McLaughlin gracefully retired from international competition after earning World gold and silver and Olympic silver and bronze.
McLaughlin, elected to the US Rowing Association's Board of Directors.
