UPDATE: Notre Dame suspends Men's Swimming program after independent conduct review
SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- The University of Notre Dame has suspended its Men's Swimming program after an independent firm completed a conduct review after finding that some athletes engaged in gambling on swimming and other sports.
University Vice President and Athletic Director Pete Bevacqua released a statement making the suspension officials on Thursday afternoon saying that the conduct review only confirmed and expanded on concerns the university had about the culture of the program.
According to the NCAA website, NCAA rules prohibit sports betting and gambling, or providing information connected to sports betting. The NCAA introducing a gambling education program with the help of EPIC Risk Management in 2022. The EPIC program is available to all NCAA campuses, including Notre Dame.
Community members saying the swim team's suspension was a shock, like Notre Dame fan Justin Tiplady.
"It's definitely something, you know, as a follower of Notre Dame and Notre Dame fan you keep an eye on because you don't want, you know, this to bleed into other athletic groups or activities within the university," said Tiplady.
Full statement from Pete Bevacqua:
"After receiving reports of possible misconduct on our men's swimming team, the University of Notre Dame engaged the law firm of Ropes & Gray LLP to conduct an in-depth review, which is now complete. The external review confirmed and expanded on our initial concerns about a deeply embedded team culture dismissive of Notre Dame's standards for student-athletes, including our expectation that they treat one another with dignity and respect. This independent, external review also documented numerous violations of NCAA rules prohibiting gambling on intercollegiate swimming and other athletic competitions despite clear and recurrent training provided to all our student-athletes by our Athletics Compliance staff about those rules. These findings are contrary to the University's values and all that we stand for in Notre Dame Athletics. In order to ensure that this behavior ends and to rebuild a culture of dignity, respect, and exemplary conduct, we have decided to suspend the men's swimming program for at least one academic year.
While individual conduct varied, the overwhelming cultural dynamic on the team necessitates a full suspension. We profoundly regret that the small number of team members who did not participate in the conduct, and those who were planning on joining the team this fall, will also suffer the consequences of this decision. We deeply value our responsibilities as educators and our commitment to our student-athletes and will work with other University offices as appropriate to provide support to those affected by our decision. While we are certainly disappointed by the actions that led to the decision, we recognize that our students make mistakes, and our goal is to educate and support them to the best of our ability.
The coaching staff participated in and fully cooperated with all aspects of the external review. The review found that the staff was not aware of gambling or the scope and extent of other troubling behaviors because team members effectively concealed such behaviors from the coaches and staff through concerted efforts. According to the review, when the staff became aware of certain isolated incidents of unacceptable conduct, they treated them seriously and professionally. We appreciate the continued service of the staff to our women's swimming and diving programs and our men's diving program during these difficult times.
As stated at the launch of the review, we take seriously our obligation to foster a community of student-athletes who not only compete and perform at the highest level academically and athletically, but whose conduct reflects the University's values. We hope this decision sends a clear and unequivocal message reaffirming that commitment and expectation. And, as we do after any major action, we will continue to review our internal processes and reporting structures to ensure that we are doing all that we can to nurture a positive experience for all Notre Dame student-athletes. We will work even harder to provide a welcoming and safe community for all our students."
Statement from Head Coach Chris Lindauer:
"While it has been a difficult few months, I am confident that Notre Dame took the correct steps to ensure this misconduct does not continue.
Our team culture is my utmost priority, and I am committed to improving upon the student-athlete experience both in and out of the pool. I am hopeful we will emerge from this situation stronger than ever.
I remain committed to the women's swimming and diving program and the men's diving program at Notre Dame, and I am looking forward to working with them this season to accomplish our goals and reach new heights."
Statement from the NCAA:
“The national office is aware that Notre Dame has declared several student-athletes ineligible in light of potential violations of sports betting rules. We continue to work with the school as it determines what occurred. The NCAA does not comment on specific eligibility cases due to student privacy laws, and we have no further comment at this time.”