The University of Virginia's first NCAA champion, Dr. Shamek Pietucha, has passed away at the age of 39.
Shamek, Class of 1999, was the first Cavalier swimmer to win an NCAA Championship, claiming the 200 butterfly in 1999. In his UVA career, he went on to earn 9 All-America citations, captured 3 ACC titles and helped the Hoos win the 1999 ACC Championship, the first in a string of eight-consecutive conference championships.
Outside of Charlottesville, Shamek competed in the 2000 Sydney Olympics for his native Canada, placing 18th in the 200m fly and 22nd in the 100m fly. He earned a silver in the 100m fly and a bronze in the 200m fly at the 1997 World University Games and gold in the 200m fly, silver in the 100m fly and bronze in the 4x100m medley relay at the 1999 Pan American Games.
Shamek touched even more lives after training as a family physician in 2006 and completing further specialization in anesthesia. He graduated from the Integrative Medicine Fellowship, led by Dr. T. Low Dog at the University of Arizona.
