Michigan State to eliminate men's, women's swimming programs after 2020-21 season

Chris Solari, Detroit Free Press
·1 min read

Michigan State athletic director Bill Beekman announced the school will no longer sponsor men's and women's swimming and diving after this school year.

Beekman, in a release Thursday afternoon, cited the COVID-19 pandemic as one of the main reasons.

"It’s forced us all to evaluate not only our current place, but also our prospects for the future. Michigan State Athletics is not immune from those calculations," he said. "Sadly, as a University and an athletic department, we’ve reached a decision that MSU Athletics will no longer sponsor men’s and women’s swimming and diving as varsity sports following the conclusion of the 2020-21 season.

Graduated Michigan State swimmer Nehemiah Mork is helping clean up efforts in his hometown Midland after flooding of the Tittabawassee River there on May 19.
Graduated Michigan State swimmer Nehemiah Mork is helping clean up efforts in his hometown Midland after flooding of the Tittabawassee River there on May 19.

"We understand that the news is devastating to our outstanding student-athletes in these sports, as well as to their coaches, but with every thoughtful analysis it became increasingly clear that we were not positioned to offer the best experience to our student-athletes, either now or in the future."

It is the first varsity sport cut by the university since it eliminated men's lacrosse in 1996.

This is a breaking story and will be updated.

Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrissolari. Read more on the Michigan State Spartans and sign up for our Spartans newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State to eliminate men's, women's swimming programs