Univ. of Toledo athletics
Toledo is adding a new varsity sport for the first time since 1995.
The schools is set to add a women's rowing program beginning in 2025-26, a source told SBJ today. The school officially announced the program's addition later in the day.
“Women’s rowing will create new opportunities for female student-athletes, will bring a significant number of high achieving students from Ohio and around the country to our campus, and will be financially beneficial for the University," Toledo AD
Bryan Blair, a
2024 SBJ Forty under 40 honoree, said in a news release. "Moreover, women’s rowing will help grow and nurture new relationships within the Toledo community by enhancing the footprint of Toledo Athletics in downtown Toledo.”
Toledo adding rowing might come as a major surprise amid discussions around revenue sharing and athlete compensation in college athletics at-large that is forcing departments to find ways to save costs. That said, Toledo's efforts are part of an ongoing mutually beneficial vision between campus and athletics at the school to drive enrollment and support athletics more fully.
As part of rowing's addition at Toledo, no resources are expected to be reallocated from any of the school's current varsity sports, while infrastructure and other associated overhead are anticipated to be low.
The team will practice and compete on the Maumee River and will utilize the Philip LeBoutillier, Jr. Memorial Boathouse in International Park in downtown Toledo. The boathouse is owned by Metroparks Toledo and is operated by the Toledo Rowing Foundation.
Women’s rowing is currently offered at 92 other Division I schools, including Ohio State, Dayton, Notre Dame, Eastern Michigan, Indiana, Louisville, West Virginia and Duquesne, among others.
