Texas A&M To Name Pool After Legendary Women’s Coach Steve Bultman

Even though he is officially retired from the Texas A&M women’s swimming and diving program, former head coach Steve Bultman is still very much on the minds of those at the school who want to honor his impact.

On Wednesday, it was announced that the Rec Center Natatorium’s pool at Texas A&M will be named after Bultman, who retired after 25 years as the women’s head coach following the 2023-24 season.

Opened in 1995, the facility recently went under $50 million in renovations that increased space 23% to 413,000 gross square feet. It has played host to the men’s and women’s NCAA Championships in 2009, the men’s NCAA Championships in 2001 and the women’s NCAA Championships in 2004.

The announcement was made both on Instagram and Facebook by the 12th Man Foundation.

Bultman presided over the program from 1999 through 2024, leading the Aggies to four Big 12 Conference titles (2007, 2008, 2010, 2012) and four straight SEC titles from 2016-2019.

Under Bultman, Texas A&M has 12 finishes in the top-10 at the NCAA Championships. He coached six individual national champions, 80 swimmers who were named All-American and 16 Olympians.

Before Bultman arrived in College Station, Texas A&M had never finished higher than third at a conference championship meet or in the top-10 at the NCAA Championships.

Every school record was broken during Bultman’s tenure.

Bultman coached in the Olympics four times doing so in 1988 and 2012 for the United States, in 2008 for Estonia for Mexico in 2016.

At the 2012 London Games, nine swimmers competed who swam for Bultman at Texas A&M, headlined by Breeja Larson and Cammile Adams. Larson finished sixth in the 100 breaststroke and was a part of Team USA’s gold medal winning team in the 400 medley relay, while Adams took fifth in the 200 fly.

Bultman was named to the U.S. coaching staff at the 1988 Seoul Games after three of his swimmers he coached at the Greater Pensacola Aquatic Club, Beth Barr, Andrea Hayes and Daniel Watters, made the U.S. team.

In 2015, Bultman was inducted into the American Swim Coaches Hall of Fame.

Bultman grew up in Louisiana and was an accomplished swimmer, winning the state title in the 50 freestyle while at Jesuit High School and going on to swim in college for LSU.