It’s only sad
news for swimmers and other users of the Jeno Tihanyi
Olympic Gold Pool as Laurentian University announced Monday
the Ben Avery facility, which includes the pool, needs
more than $10 million in repairs, and will remain closed
well into 2021, according to an email to students, staff
and faculty.
“In a recent report
commissioned by Laurentian, which examined the Ben Avery
Complex and the Jeno Tihanyi Pool in question, the noted
KPMG firm concluded that high-cost maintenance issues,
specifically in relation to the pool, will prevent the
university from immediately re-opening these facilities,”
Marie Josee Berger, provost and vice-president, academic,
said in the emailed announcement.
“The university estimates
that the cost of repairs is over $10 million, putting
these projects out of reach for the University at this
time,” Berger wrote.
Only authorized athletes,
coaches and faculty will continue to have access to parts
of the facility. The basketball teams are training in
the gym, and athletes are using the varsity training room,
following strict cleaning guidelines, according to reports.
The pool will remain closed,
although it’s reportedly full of water that is being
treated, circulated, and heated to a minimum temperature.
In Berger’s email,
there was no indication of when the report was commissioned
and when the facilities were examined. Nor was there any
list of specific issues.
In early fall, the pool had
been ready for swimming, according to reports.
The KPMG report’s findings,
the impacts of COVID-19, small numbers of students actually
on campus, a second wave of the pandemic, and the cancellation
of varsity competitive sport — all fuelled the “difficult”
decision to keep the Ben Avery and the pool closed “untilat
least April 30, 2021,” Berger wrote.
“Laurentian University
continues to actively seek out grants, partnerships, or
capital funding that might play a role in funding the
safety improvements necessary for a reopening of the Ben
Avery Complex and the Jeno Tihanyi Pool.”
Home pool advantage
Alex Baumann, two-time Olympic
champion at the 1984 Olympics, among other Olympians,
and noteworthy alumni, trained at the pool. The pool is
home to the broad swimming community, including Voyageur
varsity, Laurentian Masters, Sudbury Laurentian Swim Club,
and Sudbury Synchronized Swimming teams.
Those 200-plus athletes who
are now renting or buying passes for pool time at City
of Greater Sudbury pools and following strict COVID-19
protocols since mid-September.
As well, hundreds of swimmers
took lessons; two SCUBA clubs trained there; the pool
rented to birthday parties; and in particular operated
the SWAM (Swimming with a Mission) Canada program, which
provides one-on-one water safety and swimming lessons
for children with disabilities.
“The pool was in fine
operational condition at the time of initial closure,”
says Dean Henze, head coach of SLSC.
“I was initially told
that operational costs were the issue. I worked pretty
hard to get most of that funding lined up for them. Then
we were told that COVID was becoming an issue again, but
swimming safety protocols have proven extremely effective.”
He wonders what is needed
immediately, from an operational point of view, to open
the pool. He wonders what has changed since March that
makes the pool unusable and, finally, what happens at
the end of April, he wrote in an email.
In her letter, Laurentian’s
Berger also noted that the university has had “many
opportunities” to connect with the community about
the pool. Her letter acknowledges the pool’s contribution
and its importance to “our students, our athletes
and swimmers in particular, and to the broader Sudbury
community.”
The varsity swim team —
which notably won Laurentian’s only medal at any
2019 U Sports national championships — now trains
at the Howard Armstrong complex in Valley East.
Since October, swimming alumni
have created a COVID-19 relief fund and donated over $7,000
to supplement fundraising events that couldn’t be
held this year, according to an alumni spokesperson.
Timeframe
On March 11, the university
closed the pool in response to the outbreak of COVID-19
and the eventual lockdown of much of the world.
In June the announcement
came to end Canadian varsity sport and several requests
for interviews about the pool were made.
At the time, there was no
mention of maintenance issues. Word was that the pool
would remain closed and would be reviewed in “the
coming months,” according to emails from university
spokespersons.
In the fall, two-semester
sports saw their seasons cancelled. The pool situation
was unclear, but some clubs had received plans for return
to training.
A request in the fall for
an interview about physical issues and the cost of the
pool was declined.
Since mid-November, rumours
have crackled across Sudbury’s unique high-speed
internet, so a request was madeto interview Berger. On
Nov. 18, the university provided The Star with its Oct.
19 update and declined the request for an interview via
Zoom or phone.
The university did offer
to answer written questions by email, which were then
submitted on Dec. 1. The answers were received ahead of
deadline on Monday, Dec 14, prior to the word on closing
until at least April and the cost of repairs were known.
Question 1: Since Sept. 11,
pools have been open in Sudbury — safely and effectively,
with hourly cleaning of hotspots on the pool deck (ie
bleachers), in lobbies and changerooms as per re-opening
guidelines — all of which were approved through
Public Health Sudbury.
There are extensive guidelines
outlining safe practices from various bodies like Lifesaving
Society and Public Health, and Swimming Canada released
data in September that showed the safe reopening of high
performance centres: www.swimswam.com/swimming-canada-releases-data-on-safe-reopening-of-high-performance-centres.
In New Jersey, for example, until the state shut most
things down, there were no accounts of transmission at
pools: www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/news/study-zero-incidents-of-covid-19-infections-at-indoor-pools.
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