BYU Swim and Dive Begin Practice in New Pool

PROVO, UT – The BYU swim and dive teams have returned home to their new Richards Building Pool.

“We are ecstatic to have our facility back,” says BYU head coach John Brooks. “The best way to describe it was us being homeless for a year and a half and now we’ve been adopted back by our own family again. It’s great to have a new facility and we are excited to hit the ground running with an awesome new facility.”

Over the past year and a half of being without a home pool, the Cougars have trained at several locations including the University of California, University of Utah, Orem Rec Center, Riverside and Puerto Rico. The teams have powered through not having a home pool for quite some time but are ready to be back practicing and racing in their own territory.

The facility features a pool that can be used as 18 25-yard lanes or eight 40-meter lanes with Omega back fin blocks. In the pool, a bulkhead allows the 40-meter pool to be shortened to eight 25-yard lanes for the college competition season. In addition to the competition pool, the swimmers have access to a six-lane, 25-yard lap pool. For divers, the facility includes 1-meter and 3-meter boards and stands as well as 3-meter and 5-meter platforms. They also have a bubbler system, spotting harness and showers on deck. In addition, the facility includes new videoboards, a new dry-land training room, all new HVAC, lighting and sound system, and increased seating on the east side of the pool. For coaches, new offices are located next to the facility that allow deck access.

The facility will keep its original name recognizing Stephen L. Richards who served on the BYU Board of Trustees, was an assistant commissioner of Church education and a counselor in the First Presidency for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.