Tennessee, Virginia Pull Out of Michigan Tri Meet Over Pool Safety

Tennessee and Virginia have withdrawn from a scheduled triangular with Michigan over concerns about waterborne illnesses at the Michigan pool.

We’re told by the Michigan athletic department that a few Michigan team members came down with illnesses last week, and the program adjusted its practice schedule to stay out of the pool while the water was tested and cleaned. While the school says the pool has been tested and deemed safe for competition, the Tennessee and Virginia programs have elected not to travel to Michigan for the competition.

Here’s the full statement from Michigan’s athletic department:

Earlier today, we were informed by both Tennessee and Virginia that they will be pulling out of this weekend’s scheduled meet due concerns over pool safety.

The health and safety of all competitors is always our top priority. Following previous reports of a common waterborne illness, we collaborated with the University of Michigan Environment, Health and Safety (EHS) office on a thorough set of procedures to test and clean the water at Canham Natatorium.

Last Thursday (Oct. 10), EHS deemed the pool safe to use and the teams returned to normal training. On Tuesday (Oct. 15), following two independent lab tests, EHS reaffirmed that Canham Natatorium was safe for competition.

Due to the schedule change, the swimming and diving program will host an intrasquad at 5 p.m. on Friday (Oct. 18) at Canham Natatorium.

While Michigan did not say what the contamination was, a notice posted on the school’s recreation department website that said a swimmer disagnosed with Cryptosporidiosis had used “one or more” aquatics facilities during the month of August to October. Cryptosporidiosis is an infection where small parasites enter the body, travel to the small intestine, and burrow in the walls of the intestines.

The meet was set to be the marquee matchup of the weekend, featuring three top-10 women’s programs and two top-15 men’s programs. Michigan says it will host an intrasquad matchup instead.

We asked Michigan last week, when rumors of problems with the pool safety swirled, for more information, and at the time they did say that “a few team members did come down with an illness,” and that the pool was given a shock chlorine treatment for 12 hours. While the team was out of the pool, they were doing more dryland practice and were using alternate local pools to train.

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Wahoowa03
4 years ago

UVA is now going to Tennessee on Saturday at 11am.

Health Department
4 years ago

Wondering if there is any insurance for the parents and families that made travel plans for the meet… seems like most families would have had flights and hotels that can’t be cancelled on such short notice…especially since it sounds like this problem was going on for a while….

SwimMom
Reply to  Health Department
4 years ago

I doubt it. Adults can choose to book with travel insurance…. always the potential that something will happen.

Swammer
4 years ago

The UVA travel schedule is intense. I am sure most UVA swimmers were happy to skip the trip. They should have held it in Charlottesville maybe.

Anonymous
Reply to  Swammer
4 years ago

Teams traveling to UVA/UT might be happy not to contract it from exposed UVA/UT pools via swimmers. They are doing many teams a favor by not going. Thanks UVA and TN!

DravenOP
Reply to  Swammer
4 years ago

I hear they are potentially going to UT this weekend instead. We will see.

2 Cents
Reply to  Swammer
4 years ago

Yeah, I have to imagine their travel budget was already stretched pretty thin after that trip to Cali the other week… they have never traveled that far for a nonNCAA champ meet in program history. They will still see TN at their invite in about a month, and still have Wisc coming to town next weekend.

DravenOP
4 years ago

Not even worth the chance of someone getting really sick over an October meet.

Doconc
4 years ago

“Watery diarrhea”
There is more to this story

Cripto is an hiv or immunosuppressed infection

volmenusa
4 years ago

Heck fire glad our Girls and Men will not be exposed to potentially harmful water. Why take the chance? Very smart move by UT. More time to train in Knoxville, watch our football team upset Bama and recruit!!!

CuriousBystander
Reply to  volmenusa
4 years ago

Thank goodness your Women and Boys will be safe.

volmenusa
Reply to  CuriousBystander
4 years ago

Dont think the Moms or younger brothers would have been at risk since they would bein the stands cheering on the VOLS and Girl Vols

PK Doesn't Like His Long Name
Reply to  volmenusa
4 years ago

Grow up.

volmenusa
Reply to  PK Doesn't Like His Long Name
4 years ago

Why the uncalled for personal attack?

The Michael Phelps Caterpillar
4 years ago

The Desorbo Effect cannot overcome the Parasite Effect!!!!! It is too strong!!!

takeitback
4 years ago

Poopy-di scoop
Scoop-diddy-whoop
Whoop-di-scoop-di-poop
Poop-di-scoopty
Scoopty-whoop
Whoopity-scoop, whoop-poop
Poop-diddy, whoop-scoop
Poop, poop
Scoop-diddy-whoop
Whoop-diddy-scoop
Whoop-diddy-scoop, poop

Admin
Reply to  takeitback
4 years ago

I laughed and I hate that I laughed, but I did.

Hollerback Girl
Reply to  takeitback
4 years ago

“I’m the scat man”

Anonymous
Reply to  takeitback
4 years ago

What tune works for this?

Entgegen
Reply to  Anonymous
4 years ago

About Jared Anderson

Jared Anderson

Jared Anderson swam for nearly twenty years. Then, Jared Anderson stopped swimming and started writing about swimming. He's not sick of swimming yet. Swimming might be sick of him, though. Jared was a YMCA and high school swimmer in northern Minnesota, and spent his college years swimming breaststroke and occasionally pretending …

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