After impressive performances at nationals last spring, the Clemson club swim team was eager to get back to work this fall. However, after only the first couple weeks of practice, the team’s momentum was forced to a standstill when it was notified a fallen lightbulb in McHugh Natatorium had landed in the pool.
Fike’s policy for a situation like this is to drain the pool entirely, remove the remnants of the lightbulb and then refill the pool. As a result, the team hasn’t been able to practice for over a week.
“The pool closure has definitely not been fun,” club president Ben Simpkins told The Tiger. “It’s pretty unfortunate for this to happen so early in the semester and will most likely hurt some people’s performances at our home meet in a few weeks.”
Despite not having their regularly scheduled practices, there have still been opportunities for the Tigers to get in the water – just not the body of water they’re used to. Last Thursday, the Clemson triathlon club invited the team to participate in their lake swim of roughly 2,000 yards. The team enjoyed this experience and was grateful for the opportunity to get in some training.
The Clemson club swim executive board consists of Simpkins, Vice President Ryan Dix, Treasurer Sydney Lavin, Secretary Jacey Matthews, Social Chair Riley Lugo and Safety Officer Ian Frank.
Simpkins and Dix, now seniors, were both members of the Tigers’ record-breaking relay teams that competed at nationals in Indianapolis back in April. These two seniors look to lead the team to another successful year.
Looking ahead to the spring semester, the team will be traveling to Arizona State University for this year’s nationals, which Simpkins says will be an expensive trip. He shared that the club has requested contingency funding but is unsure if they will receive it. In the meantime, the team started a GoFundMe to raise money for travel expenses, raising over $2,000 so far. Further fundraising information can be found at the link on the team’s Instagram page.
The team has been told that the pool will be reopening this week and looks forward to diving back into preparation for its home meet on Oct. 5; the Tigers will also be traveling to Auburn University on Oct. 26 and Florida State University on Nov. 9 to compete this semester.
