Michael Phelps Cheers While Critics Fume at Swimming Olympic Trials Pool in NFL Stadium

“I definitely think it’s exciting to say that you’re going to race at an NFL stadium,” said legendary swimmer Katie Ledecky. In a jaw-dropping twist, the Indianapolis Lucas Oil Stadium is making waves—literally! Chosen as the place to be for swimmers who are Paris Olympics hopefuls, this gridiron giant is trading touchdowns for tumble turns.

Almost two million gallons of water were pumped inside the Indianapolis Lucas Oil Stadium to serve the purpose of a temporary swimming pool. The initiative taken up by the Indianapolis authorities is for the Olympic Trials from June 15 to 23. So, grab your goggles and get ready to witness history in the making. The world’s top swimmers are about to make a splash where NFL stars clash during the season. However, given the amount of resources put into making this happen, there have been mixed reactions from the swimming community. But supporting the initiative is legendary swimmer Michael Phelps. 

In a now-deleted Instagram story by Michael Phelps, the 23-time Olympic gold medalist appreciated the mammoth effort. Phelps shared a post from ESPN on his story, which showed the newly set-up swimming pool. He wrote, “This. Is. AWESOME!!” Surely, such a modern-day marvel took everyone by surprise. While a host of fans and former swimmers expressed their excitement, personalities like Bobby Finke, a gold medal winner from 2021, also found the whole idea “crazy.” 

NFL stadiums are no strangers to being used for different purposes. Every year, during Formula 1’s Miami GP, the Dolphins’ Hard Rock Stadium becomes the teams and drivers’ paddock. And, of course, when it comes to concerts like Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, these NFL stadiums become their grandest stages. But housing a swimming pool? Now, that’s a first. And it’s one that couldn’t have been possible without the Indianapolis community’s belief.

Standing in front of the gridiron-turned-pool, Patrick Talty, president of Indiana Sports Corp., said, “Who would have thought that there would be a pool built inside of a football stadium? Not many people did, but this community did. And this community has delivered.” Describing how they made this possible, Sarah Myer – head of staff and strategy – said, “Think of like a big Lego set for a pool.” Authorities shipped the pool materials from northern Italy and filled them up with pipes that were 6000 feet in length.

A process that took three weeks to construct two pools involved removing every bit of the NFL remnants. They installed rubberized woven flooring to accommodate the pool 10 feet above the flooring of the stadium. By employing such advanced engineering, the 2.5m deep swimming pool was successfully installed without affecting the stadium’s base.

Besides the swimmers, dignitaries from the authorities also expressed their wonder at the entire ceremony. Shana Ferguson, the Chief Commercial Officer of USA Swimming, defined the project as “It’s wild and bananas.” Unfortunately, there are always two sides to a coin. A large part of the swimming fraternity is dissatisfied and enraged about the whole situation. 

Fans unhappy with the NFL pool arrangement

The Lucas Oil Stadium might be a marvel of modern engineering, but pleasing the fans has always been a hard ask. In the comments section of the Instagram post by ESPN, the public outrage seemed to be shooting through the roof. Expressing their displeasure, the fans raised several concerns. Most of them termed the project a show-off gimmick and advised the authorities to host the trials inside a real pool. Others were concerned about what would happen to the water once the trials were over, hinting at a mass wastage of water. 

One user opined –“What hasn’t this stadium hosted?!”. The user underscored the inherent potential that the stadium has to tread across sporting territories and was visibly surprised. Yet another user alluded to Roman mythology by saying –“I won’t be impressed until they flood the entire stadium floor and reenact ancient Roman sea battles.” Thinking outside the box seems to be this user’s driving force and Roman sea battles in mythical folklore was something to be heralded for, hence this comment.

Another user said –

“What do they do with the water after?” showcasing the undertones of curiosity as to the mechanics of this makeshift pool arrangement. Similarly, another commenter followed suit, saying, “Why go through all this work? There’s so many other facilities capable of holding this.” Since the surplus of stadiums allocated for swimming is a dime a dozen, this user’s comment was justified and valid. His POV entailed as to why an NFL stadium had to be reconstructed from the ground up, sparking some unease in the comment section.

Another section of the masses lashed out for wasting too much money on what they thought was an unnecessary expense. Thus, it is pretty evident that the heat is for real ahead of the Olympic trials. However, an electric show at the trials might just be enough to pacify all the negative buzzes. Until then, all we can do is wait and watch for massive wingspans to glide across the turquoise waters.