Support AC block funding
Brian Robertson
Issue date: 3/26/08 Section: Forum
We are all athletes. Every day a large proportion of students at Washington University participate in some form of exercise. Some head to the Athletic Complex to get in an intense game of racquetball or to pump some iron before class. Others, in intramural and club sports, use the AC facilities daily, flying up and down the court in IM basketball or rowing themselves into exhaustion on the ergs. Still others compete on the varsity level, traveling to the Athletic Complex multiple times per day and spending nearly as much of their Wash. U. time at the AC as they do in their beds.
On all levels, these athletes demonstrate remarkable passion for their sports, whether it be challenging for the Director's Cup championship or finishing highly in numerous club and intramural tournaments and competition.
It's a shame that all these athletes must make do with facilities that are nowhere near appropriate for the zeal and effort that these competitors bring to their sports. In addition to rising to the challenges of their opposition, these athletes must work with facilities that are, to put it politely, inadequate.
As a varsity athlete who travels frequently to other Division III schools, I can tell you that far from being equivalent to the facilities of other universities in our division, our Athletic Complex does not even measure up to some local high schools. An athletic facility by no means needs to be extravagant enough to give an obscene advantage to those who utilize it. But at the very least it should not be a hindrance to their performance. I'm sure you all have heard about the amazing success of the men's basketball team bringing home the Div. III championship title this weekend. But what many of you haven't heard is how earlier last week, that same team had to deal with a flooded locker room in facilities that apparently are not even up to the task of repelling moisture.
So I implore you, all you student-athletes of Washington University, to send a message to the administration: Vote this Wednesday and Thursday for block funding for the Athletic Complex. We've put so much effort into supporting those activities that we are passionate about, now it is time to take the first step toward asking the University to do the same. We want to level the playing field, not for ourselves, but for the legacy of Wash. U. athletics that will exist long after we leave this place. We are ready to challenge a University that professes to support its students' athletic endeavors to finally back up its claims. This Wednesday and Thursday we are all athletes.
Brian is a senior in Arts & Sciences. He can be reached via e-mail at bjrobert@artsci.wustl.edu.
On all levels, these athletes demonstrate remarkable passion for their sports, whether it be challenging for the Director's Cup championship or finishing highly in numerous club and intramural tournaments and competition.
It's a shame that all these athletes must make do with facilities that are nowhere near appropriate for the zeal and effort that these competitors bring to their sports. In addition to rising to the challenges of their opposition, these athletes must work with facilities that are, to put it politely, inadequate.
As a varsity athlete who travels frequently to other Division III schools, I can tell you that far from being equivalent to the facilities of other universities in our division, our Athletic Complex does not even measure up to some local high schools. An athletic facility by no means needs to be extravagant enough to give an obscene advantage to those who utilize it. But at the very least it should not be a hindrance to their performance. I'm sure you all have heard about the amazing success of the men's basketball team bringing home the Div. III championship title this weekend. But what many of you haven't heard is how earlier last week, that same team had to deal with a flooded locker room in facilities that apparently are not even up to the task of repelling moisture.
So I implore you, all you student-athletes of Washington University, to send a message to the administration: Vote this Wednesday and Thursday for block funding for the Athletic Complex. We've put so much effort into supporting those activities that we are passionate about, now it is time to take the first step toward asking the University to do the same. We want to level the playing field, not for ourselves, but for the legacy of Wash. U. athletics that will exist long after we leave this place. We are ready to challenge a University that professes to support its students' athletic endeavors to finally back up its claims. This Wednesday and Thursday we are all athletes.
Brian is a senior in Arts & Sciences. He can be reached via e-mail at bjrobert@artsci.wustl.edu.
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