Syracuse to Cut Men’s and Women’s Swimming

I read the referenced articles, signed the petition and sent this note to Swimming World Magazine: I'm a masters swimmer with the club that trains at Northwestern University. Northwestern is comparable to Syracuse in size and type of school. The men's program came in sixth at NCAA's this year with a small team. Northwestern has made the kind of commitment necessary to compete at the highest D1 level. I suspect Syracuse could so if it wanted to. The process is certainly not a short term undertaking. I understand but am disappointed by the desire to take the short-cut to having another competitive D1 sports team. A lot of the blame seems to be laid at the feet of the Syracuse athletic director, and I suppose certainly much of it should be. The kind of support necessary to commit to growing the swimming programs at Syracuse (I've seen figures of $35-50 million for a new facility) has to come from the university's administration and broader community as a whole, not just the athletic department. Northwestern's success in swimming has its roots probably twenty years ago with the construction of the Sports and Aquatics Center and the hiring of Bob Groseth to head the men's program. That long-term commitment has paid off with top-ten NCAA finishes for the men's team the last three years. Northwestern's women's program is definitely on the upswing as well, sending five swimmers to the NCAA championships this year. This recap of Northwestern's success is not to crow about it but to show that a small, academically elite school can be successful at the upper reaches of NCAA swimming. That sort of commitment doesn't come just from the AD hiring a couple good coaches and walking away. After about 25 years away from swimming (and having never swum at the collegiate level) I took it up again at 50 as a form of exercise I could do for the rest of my life. My son plays hockey as do many of his cousins. Their hockey careers have already ended or will, in all likelihood, end when they graduate from high school. My brothers-in-law all played hockey at either the club or D1 levels in college. Only one still plays and coaches. Hockey is hardly a lifetime sport for most people. From a practical standpoint it seems to me that swimming provides greater lifetime opportunities for its participants, whether it's personal fitness, coaching or continued participation at a high level (note Dara Torres' and Amanda Beard's recent forays back into swimming at the international level with the aim of making the 2008 Olympic team). It's a shame that Syracuse has decided to end its swimming programs. Hockey is fun to watch, but personally, if I had to choose I would be in the water instead of in the stands. Skip Montanaro Evanston, IL

I read the referenced articles, signed the petition and sent this note to Swimming World Magazine: I'm a masters swimmer with the club that trains at Northwestern University. Northwestern is comparable to Syracuse in size and type of school. The men's program came in sixth at NCAA's this year with a small team. Northwestern has made the kind of commitment necessary to compete at the highest D1 level. I suspect Syracuse could so if it wanted to. The process is certainly not a short term undertaking. I understand but am disappointed by the desire to take the short-cut to having another competitive D1 sports team. A lot of the blame seems to be laid at the feet of the Syracuse athletic director, and I suppose certainly much of it should be. The kind of support necessary to commit to growing the swimming programs at Syracuse (I've seen figures of $35-50 million for a new facility) has to come from the university's administration and broader community as a whole, not just the athletic department. Northwestern's success in swimming has its roots probably twenty years ago with the construction of the Sports and Aquatics Center and the hiring of Bob Groseth to head the men's program. That long-term commitment has paid off with top-ten NCAA finishes for the men's team the last three years. Northwestern's women's program is definitely on the upswing as well, sending five swimmers to the NCAA championships this year. This recap of Northwestern's success is not to crow about it but to show that a small, academically elite school can be successful at the upper reaches of NCAA swimming. That sort of commitment doesn't come just from the AD hiring a couple good coaches and walking away. After about 25 years away from swimming (and having never swum at the collegiate level) I took it up again at 50 as a form of exercise I could do for the rest of my life. My son plays hockey as do many of his cousins. Their hockey careers have already ended or will, in all likelihood, end when they graduate from high school. My brothers-in-law all played hockey at either the club or D1 levels in college. Only one still plays and coaches. Hockey is hardly a lifetime sport for most people. From a practical standpoint it seems to me that swimming provides greater lifetime opportunities for its participants, whether it's personal fitness, coaching or continued participation at a high level (note Dara Torres' and Amanda Beard's recent forays back into swimming at the international level with the aim of making the 2008 Olympic team). It's a shame that Syracuse has decided to end its swimming programs. Hockey is fun to watch, but personally, if I had to choose I would be in the water instead of in the stands. Skip Montanaro Evanston, IL