WHAT: Washington University in St. Louis will hold a ceremonial groundbreaking ceremony for the Gary M. Sumers Recreation Center.
WHO: Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton; John Schael, director of athletics; Matthew Re, Student Union president; Gary Sumers, member of the WUSTL Board of Trustees; and Craig D. Schnuck, vice chair and chair-elect of the Board of Trustees.
WHERE: Western side of the Danforth Campus, near the intersection of Forsyth and Big Bend boulevards. Enter from Forsyth via Olympian Way.
WHEN: The ceremony begins at 4 p.m. Friday, April 11. A reception will immediately follow in the Athletic Complex.
MORE: Scheduled to open in fall 2016, the Gary M. Sumers Recreation Center is part of a $54 million renovation and expansion of the university Athletic Complex — the first significant update since 1985.
The center will add more than 60,000 square feet to the Athletic Complex, including the Gary M. Sumers Fitness Center. The fitness center will offer a variety of fitness classes such as spinning, strength training, yoga and cardio fitness.
The new state-of-the-art fitness and recreation facilities will enhance efforts to encourage the WUSTL community to develop healthy lifestyles and habits for life. The center will have much-needed space for intramural sports, exercise classes and recreation and fitness activities.
The Sumers Recreation Center will include:
• A reimagined Francis Gymnasium. Visitors will enter the facility through the historic towers of the Francis Gymnasium, which once again will be linked by a path to Graham Chapel, as originally envisioned by the university architects Cope and Stewardson.
• A new 66,500-square-foot addition, located south of the current Francis Gymnasium, boasting skylights and sweeping views of Francis Field
• A renovated auxiliary gym in the existing Athletic Complex
• A suspended jogging track
• A three-court gymnasium
• Two multipurpose rooms
• A spinning studio
• State-of-the-art fitness equipment
• Team locker rooms
• Team meeting rooms
• Expanded sports medicine suite
CONTACT: Liam Otten, 314-935-8494 (office) or 314-874-6331 (cell).
