Kali Sullivan
If you look around the Georgetown campus, you’ll be captivated by the elegant Healy Hall, the shimmering Rafik B. Hariri business school, and the stately-and-state-of-the-art former Jesuit Residence. Soon, this motley collection of buildings will be joined by a gorgeous brand-new dorm, the Northeast Triangle. The Georgetown community prides itself on its campus—carefully maintained and constantly updated. Yet, despite the ceaseless construction and renovations, no effort has been made to bring back an outdoor tennis court.
Up until 2014, tennis courts were another defining feature of the Georgetown landscape, and more importantly, the Georgetown experience. And then, the courts were demolished to make room for the John Thompson Jr. Intercollegiate Athletic Center (IAC). Ironically, the IAC—designed to provide upgraded training facilities and thereby solidify Georgetown as a real player in college sports—has destroyed one of the most popular sites for competitive and social participation in sports on campus.
While Georgetown’s prestigious basketball and soccer programs will no doubt benefit from the IAC’s amenities, the cost is already being borne by their sibling Division I tennis team, which has been relegated to training at a local high school.
Perhaps even worse than the physical destruction of the tennis courts is the blow that’s been dealt to the wider sports culture at Georgetown. Georgetown athletics cannot be taken seriously while teams are competing for practice time with 14-year-olds. Worse yet, the tennis teams now have no regular home court to call their own—no space on campus to bask in the cheers of fans and classmates. If Georgetown can ever be considered an elite athletic program, it needs to give its teams—all its teams—a fair chance to compete.
Even if you ignore the impact of the John Thompson Jr. Intercollegiate Athletic Center on the varsity tennis teams, you can’t dispute that the destruction of the tennis courts has eliminated one of the most popular spaces for Georgetown students who do not play the sport at a varsity level. The outdoor tennis courts, which did not require previously scheduled reservations, was an inclusive gathering place where anyone in the Georgetown community to enjoy tennis, together. People of all ages and skill levels were able to share this space, challenge themselves, and appreciate the beauty of the game.
Though the IAC will surely improve training for our most competitive varsity sports on campus, it is a space few Georgetown students can enjoy. This would not be an issue if the outdoor tennis courts were relocated to another part of campus, but, unfortunately, they were not. Georgetown students now have to compete for reservations at the handful of courts at Yates Field House with regular Yates patrons—an obstacle that has decimated the Club Tennis team and has significantly discouraged casual tennis-playing on campus. And while university funds are busy building new dorms per request of our neighbors, other spaces on campus available to all Georgetown students, like Kehoe Field, have been consistently passed over in the selections for renovations.
The Editorial Board is well aware of the space restrictions on campus, but it is difficult to believe that there is nothing that can be done to improve the situation. Now with the announcement of the new renovations to Multi-Sport Field, which will soon be renamed Cooper Field, we know that improvement to the sports culture at Georgetown is truly possible. Unfortunately, it seems like these improvements favor certain sports over others. If Georgetown wants to be legitimate center for college athletics, it needs to make an effort to improve the training facilities across all varsity sports and the spaces of inclusion for everyone in the Georgetown community to enjoy.
