After numerous postponements, the new Soldiers Field natatorium will finally open its doors to the swimmers--although the first meet won't be held there until next month--but the opening comes with one strike already against the pool.

Relocation

The delayed completion of the pool forced the relocation of this past weekend's U.S. Women's International Swimming Meet, originally slated for the new Harvard facility, from Cambridge to Providence. The meet, sponsored and conducted by Harvard, was run Saturday and Sunday at Brown University's Smith Swimming Complex.

Despite the move away from Cambridge, Harvard retained control of all meet operations.

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"The women swimmers went to Logan Airport to meet the teams coming in from other countries," said Maura Costin '80, a Harvard swimmer. "We rode with them down to Providence and tried to help them in getting settled for the meet."

Along with the swimmers, who helped out in the operation of the meet with timing, selling programs, keeping order around the pool, and offering assistance to the visiting swimmers, the Harvard swimming coaches assumed the task of managing, organizing, and directing the entire meet.

"It's too bad we couldn't have hosted the meet here, because it would have been much easier to run," Costin said.

Joe Bernal, the men's coach, and Stephanie Walsh, the women's head coach, teamed up with their assistants, Steve Berizzi and Paula Newman, to form the nucleus of a Harvard staff that anchored the operations of the two-day event for which NBC provided national television coverage.

In an attempt to keep a Harvard atmosphere in the Brown pool, Harvard put up a large Veritas banner and kept the Harvard name and insignia visible on T-shirts, programs, and meet souvenirs.

Touch of Harvard

"It was nice because there was a touch of Harvard all over the place," Costin said, "but it's just too bad that the swimmers didn't get to see Harvard, Boston, and the new pool."

The presence of former Harvard swim coaches added to the Harvard-in-Providence atmosphere. Don Gambril, the men's swim coach here from 1971-1973. was at Brown as a coach with the U.S. Women's national team.

National Coaches

Skip Kenny and Jay Huneke, both one-time assistant coaches here under Gambril, were also active in the meet, Kenny as an independent coach, and Huneke as a coach for the Canadian National team.