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SALT LAKE CITY â Coming off a No. 3 finish at the NCAA's nationals in April, the Red Rocks are the latest Utah athletic program to get an upgraded facility on campus.
The university announced Wednesday a $4.6 million project to expand and upgrade the Dumke Gymnastics Center, which opened in 1999, on campus. The project is set to begin on March 1, 2022 and be completed that December.
"It is extremely gratifying to receive the type of donor support needed to undertake a project of this magnitude," Utah Athletics Director Mark Harlan said. "Expanding the Dumke Gymnastics Center will keep our national championship-contending program at the forefront of the sport, and continue to attract the type of world-class student-athletes who have elevated this storied program to the position it is in today.
"This expansion will upgrade what is already one of the most impressive facilities in the nation, and further solidify our commitment to providing our student-athletes with the best possible environment to train and develop their talents. We're grateful for the generous donors who have made this possible."
The expansion will include a partial second story where a bigger team locker, offices for the coaching staff and a lounge overlooking the facility will be included. The university will also upgrade the facilities training and rehabilitation area for the gymnasts.
"We are so excited to break ground on this project and are beyond thankful for the support our program has received during this process," gymnastics head coach Tom Farden said. "Without our fans and donors, this program can only do so much. It takes a whole community to succeed and the outpouring of support from our donors has been incredible. We cannot wait to get started with this project and take another significant step forward as a program.
"These improvements to our training facility are essential. Upgrading the Dumke will attract the best of the best to our program and will provide each student-athlete with the finest experience possible during their time as a Red Rock."
The Red Rocks have already bolstered their recruiting class and recently added three gymnasts that were included in the latest Summer Olympics, including silver medalist Grace McCallum, bronze medalist Amelie Morgan and Olympic alternate Kara Eaker. With nearly the entire team from last season returning, Utah has arguably the most depth its ever had.
"Depth is a luxury but also can be a curse," Farden told KSL.com. "One of the luxuries with depth is obviously we're going to be able to interchange a lot of people and different events and hope that it doesn't affect our overall score too much. But obviously there's a liability to it. I'm trying to keep 16 women happy, highly competitive women, engaged, motivated and caring about the same goal."
Fans can get their first look at the Red Rocks Friday, Dec. 17 at the Huntsman Center for the annual Red Rocks Preview, which will be the first time the arena has been fully open to fans to watch the gymnasts since early 2020.
