Spring Break
Status of swimming and diving program unclear
by Sam Datlof
News | 1/13/09
Posted online at 6:09 AM EST on 1/13/09
The future status of the varsity swimming and diving program is still being determined by administrators and the team following the closing of the Linsey pool, Senior Vice President for Communications Lorna Miles wrote in an e-mail to the Justice.
The Linsey pool has been closed since Oct. 28 due to problems with the heating system. The water in the pool and the air in the poolroom were too cold for swimming. The pool will remain closed indefinitely, Miles wrote.
"Not a great deal has changed since the end of the semester. The pool facility is now closed," Miles wrote.
Rachel Nadas '09, the captain of the women's swimming and diving team, said that Director of Athletics Sheryl Sousa '90 told her that the University will continue the program through next year but is "planning to suspend the program at the end of [the 2009 to 2010 season]."
Sousa and Assistant Director of Athletics Robin Seidman '99 both declined to comment about the state of the pool and the future of the varsity swimming and diving program.
Both short-term repairs and larger-scale renovations would prove to be expensive. The cost of a full renovation could be as much as $10 to $12 million, Miles wrote.
"The prognosis for the pool is tied to the overall economic situation. The University is facing serious challenges-and choices are difficult," Miles wrote.
Head swim coach Jim Zotz, along with men's swim team captain Mike Rubin '09 and Nadas, believe that the administration is doing everything it can, given the economic situation, to preserve the swimming and diving program.
"We're anxious about our future," Nadas said, but she added that "we're very focused on our training now."
For now, "the swim team will continue to compete, and the team will practice at neighboring Babson and Wellesley Colleges and at Bentley University," Miles wrote in an e-mail to the Justice.
The facilities at Bentley include an "eight-lane [pool] and a separate diving facility," and thus, "training there has been great," Zotz wrote in an e-mail to the Justice.
The Linsey pool has been closed since Oct. 28 due to problems with the heating system. The water in the pool and the air in the poolroom were too cold for swimming. The pool will remain closed indefinitely, Miles wrote.
"Not a great deal has changed since the end of the semester. The pool facility is now closed," Miles wrote.
Rachel Nadas '09, the captain of the women's swimming and diving team, said that Director of Athletics Sheryl Sousa '90 told her that the University will continue the program through next year but is "planning to suspend the program at the end of [the 2009 to 2010 season]."
Sousa and Assistant Director of Athletics Robin Seidman '99 both declined to comment about the state of the pool and the future of the varsity swimming and diving program.
Both short-term repairs and larger-scale renovations would prove to be expensive. The cost of a full renovation could be as much as $10 to $12 million, Miles wrote.
"The prognosis for the pool is tied to the overall economic situation. The University is facing serious challenges-and choices are difficult," Miles wrote.
Head swim coach Jim Zotz, along with men's swim team captain Mike Rubin '09 and Nadas, believe that the administration is doing everything it can, given the economic situation, to preserve the swimming and diving program.
"We're anxious about our future," Nadas said, but she added that "we're very focused on our training now."
For now, "the swim team will continue to compete, and the team will practice at neighboring Babson and Wellesley Colleges and at Bentley University," Miles wrote in an e-mail to the Justice.
The facilities at Bentley include an "eight-lane [pool] and a separate diving facility," and thus, "training there has been great," Zotz wrote in an e-mail to the Justice.
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