USA Swimming has notified Indiana Sports Corp that Indianapolis is no longer a candidate host city for the 2016 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Swimming.

“For several decades, Indianapolis has proven to be one of our most successful host cities, and we were excited that the City put forth interest to host the 2016 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Swimming at Lucas Oil Stadium,” said Mike Unger, USA Swimming Assistant Executive Director. “USA Swimming has enjoyed an excellent partnership with Indiana Sports Corp, working hand-in-hand with them on many events. We look forward to that partnership continuing with future events.

“The environment for the athletes at Olympic Trials is the highest priority of the United States Olympic Committee and USA Swimming. Lucas Oil Stadium is a fabulous facility and while the space is flexible to accommodate a number of sports and events other than football, it has proven to be challenging for creating an intimate swimming setting around the pool at this time.”

Bankers Life Fieldhouse was the host venue for the 2004 FINA World Championships (25m). Construction included two 25-meter pools (one for competition and one for practice). The Olympic Swimming Trials utilize two 50-meter pools, which does not make the Fieldhouse a viable alternative for this particular event.

“We are obviously disappointed that we will not host the Olympic Swimming Trials, and we would like to thank our great partner USA Swimming for the way they have handled this bid process and communicating this decision to us,” said Allison Melangton, Indiana Sports Corp President. “We believe our city and state are uniquely positioned to host a wide range of events better than our competitors throughout the country. With that comes the realization that we will not win 100 percent of the events we bid for, but we will continue to identify events that provide great opportunity for Indiana and aggressively pursue them. We know how much athletes and fans enjoy the Indianapolis experience and we look forward in particular to hosting the nation’s top swimmers this June for the 2013 World Championship Trials.”

In addition to the 2013 Phillips 66 National Championships and World Championship Trials (June 25-29 at the IU Natatorium on the IUPUI campus in Indianapolis), the 2013 NCAA Division I Women’s and Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships will take place at the Natatorium March 21-23 and March 28-30, respectively.

Melangton also thanked the community partners who collaborated on the Indianapolis Trials bid, including the State of Indiana, City of Indianapolis, the Capital Improvement Board, the Lucas Oil Stadium staff, Visit Indy, Indianapolis Downtown Inc., Indiana Swimming, and the volunteer leadership of the local swimming community, among others.

“Once again, our partners helped us put forward an incredible package and vision for this event. I’m confident that this team will bring similar dedication and creativity to our next bid effort,” added Melangton.

“The Indiana Sports Corp team did an outstanding job competing to host the Olympic Swimming Trials,” said Scott Dorsey, Indiana Sports Corp chairman. “While our proposed venue ultimately didn’t meet the needs of USA Swimming, we also shouldn’t lose sight of the growing financial competitiveness of other states and cities. In order to continue our leadership in hosting world-class sporting events that drive powerful economic impact, we will need the ongoing support and creativity of our cities, our state and our corporate partners.”

Indiana Sports Corp is the sports champion, stimulating economic growth, inspiring healthy kids and creating vibrant communities throughout Indiana. Indiana Sports Corp was founded in 1979 as the nation’s first sports commission. Our recent and upcoming schedule of events includes NCAA Men’s and Women’s Final Fours, Super Bowl XLVI in 2012, Big Ten Football Championship Games through 2015, Big Ten Basketball Tournaments, and much more. For more information, visit www.IndianaSportsCorp.com.

Source: Indiana Sports Corp., Inside INdiana Business