AMES — Endowed Cyclone Director of Athletics Jamie Pollard said he wouldn’t have handled anything differently regarding the discontinuation of the gymnastics program.

Pollard took partial responsibility for the program’s removal, describing it as a “360 issue.” He mentioned that his role as an athletic director can be compared to that of a head coach.

“When the 11th or 12th player [gymnastics] is in the assistant coach’s office every day,” Pollard said. “At some point in time, the head coach [Pollard] would probably say to that member of their team, maybe it’s time that we not have you on the team any longer. We’re adding a new team member [sport] through the transfer portal.”

It was also announced that the new women’s wrestling program will take over the former gymnastics facility in Beyer Hall, with renovations planned to convert it into a wrestling space that Pollard said could make the men say, “I wish we had that area.”

Beyer Hall is a university-owned facility that the athletic department utilizes portions of. 

The projected costs and details of the renovations remain unannounced. Removing the elevated floor, selling the gymnastics equipment, rebranding the facility and minor changes to the locker room were all mentioned as things that would be done for women’s wrestling.

Pollard mentioned that air conditioning would not be added to the facility as part of these renovations.