Investigation into Notre Dame swimming pool over cultural concerns comes to light

We made a deal.

For years, there was little reason to venture into this one part of the Joyce Center for a story—through Heritage Hall, turn left, and then straight back to the far corner of the building, where a pair of glass doors separate you from the unmistakable smell of chlorine.

For a story about the swimming and diving of the men of Notre Dame.

There was no reason for that until earlier this month when Chris Guiliano was on the verge of accomplishing something no Fighting Irish swimmer has ever done in the modern era: securing a spot on the U.S. team’s roster for the upcoming Olympics. Guiliano recently accomplished that, qualifying in three events — 50, 100 and 200 freestyle — and will likely be considered for the relay teams at this year’s Paris Games.

The obvious reason was Guiliano, but there was more to this swimming story.

Something was happening in the far corner of the old building. Head coach Chris Lindauer, who had just finished his second season in South Bend, was building something, a program that would reach 10^th place at national level last season and in position to aim for a national championship in the 2024/25 season.

That’s how good the program was.

While the story that day earlier this month was about Guiliano, there were more stories waiting to be told. There were more reasons to visit these cramped but cozy offices, where everything and everyone exudes a sense of confidence—if you don’t want to be great, you don’t even need to enter these doors.

You promised Lindauer you would come back, maybe sooner rather than later. There was too much good happening, too much energy in this program, in his program, to ignore it. Come back and tell our stories, Lindauer said. Whenever. About whoever.

Act.

But this one? The one that Sports Illustrated writer Pat Forde, who knows the college and U.S. swimming circuits as well as anyone with a notepad and a laptop, posted on social media early Tuesday night?

News: Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua — so new to the job that he probably hasn’t finished setting up his office on the ground floor of the Joyce Center — circulated an email within his department about “recent reports received regarding potential issues with the culture of our men’s swimming and diving team.”

What? This team? Lindauer’s team? The one with Guiliano?

In any other offseason, Forde’s three posts on X (formerly Twitter) rarely/little make a difference. Especially in June. They appear quietly (if at all) and quickly disappear. Not this offseason. Not under this head coach. Not for this program.

It’s not nothing. It could be something. It could mean anything.

Guiliano looked forward to his swim trip in Indianapolis and how he got to where he wanted to be, and pointed to the Irish program, praising the culture, a culture that seems to be being questioned.

“There’s a big culture shift in how we approach the sport,” Guiliano said. “We go out there and work hard, we’re there for each other. It’s incredible to see this growth here and the attitude towards our goals.”

Following Guiliano’s A-plus performance in Indianapolis last week, arrangements were made through Notre Dame to work with Guiliano and Lindauer again this week. As a bonus story, Lindauer was named an assistant coach for the U.S. team this week. Guiliano and Lindauer are both traveling to Paris.

Two pillars for one. “We can do it,” promised Notre Dame.

Instead, there was radio silence from the communications team. On Monday, not a word about the meeting with Guiliano and Lindauer. Not a word on Tuesday either. Then Sports Illustrated got back to us with the Bevacqua email.

Cancel the planned column with Guiliano for Friday’s Tribune. There won’t be one. No feel-good article about him or his head coach. We won’t hear anything from Guiliano any time soon. In Paris. Maybe. We won’t hear anything from Lindauer any time soon. In Paris. Maybe.

Instead of comments about a chance to pan for gold in Paris, we hear/see words like “internal investigation,” “external counsel,” and “potential problems.”

The ranks have closed. The wagons have formed a circle. According to an email from Bevacqua’s staff, after Notre Dame “learned of the potential problems,” an outside legal counsel (Ropes & Gray) was retained by the university’s legal department to “conduct a timely, independent review of the program.”

Bevacqua promised the review would be “fair and complete.” That doesn’t sound good. It sounds like there might be something there. You know what else it sounds like? It sounds like you can’t get rid of it completely, no matter what the outcome.

A permanent perma-cloud.

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