Following a Feb. 10 decision to suspend the remainder of its gymnastics season, Iowa State University athletics director Jamie Pollard has now released a letter addressing the situation.
According to Iowa State Daily, Pollard’s letter cites internal conflict between student-athletes, coaches and parents as the primary reason for cancelling the rest of the season. However, when the decision was first announced, the athletics department claimed it was due to a lack of available athletes.
Related: Iowa State Ends Gymnastics Season Early Due to Lack of Available Athletes
“The decision to suspend the season resulted from a series of complex internal conflicts between individual teammates, coaching staff members and parents,” Pollard stated. “These conflicts created unreconcilable differences that not only prevented our team from competing, but they also prevented team members from carrying on their daily activities, including practice. In the end, suspending the remainder of the season was the only viable alternative. We also realize many of you have a concern about what this means for the long-term viability of gymnastics at Iowa State University. We share that same concern. Unfortunately, conflicts within our gymnastics team are not new. Comparable challenges have occurred multiple times in our program’s history.”
Anonymous parents of student-athletes spoke with the Iowa State Daily and reported tension with the gymnastics team coaching staff.
“He [Pollard] hired the head coach who had no experience,” the parent said. “Did that set it up to fail? Also, he let her hire assistant coaches without experience. Has that been done with any other program?”
According to The Des Moines Register, in the aftermath of the canceled season, Iowa State gymnasts have lost access to their on-campus gymnastics facilities. Per NCAA policy, the gymnasts “are allowed to train at private gyms so long as no more than two of them are present at the same time.”
The athletics department has been working with student-athletes to address questions of eligibility and opportunities to enter the transfer portal.
