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Texas A&M Swimming & Diving Facility Naming Announced

Paup Pavilion, which originally broke ground in the fall of 2019, and is named for lead donors Anne & Henry B. "Hank" Paup '70
Credit: KAGS-TV

COLLEGE STATION, Texas — The Texas A&M swimming & diving programs along with the 12th Man Foundation have announced Anne S. & Henry B. “Hank” Paup ’70 Pavilion Texas A&M Swimming & Diving as the name for the new state-of-the-art swimming & diving facility. Paup Pavilion, which originally broke ground in the fall of 2019, and is named for lead donors Anne & Henry B. "Hank" Paup '70.

 

The Paup family, accompanied by head coaches Steve Bultman and Jay Holmes, visited the facility in August for a tour of the progress as they walked through the dryland diving training center, nearly completed locker rooms, expansive athletic training room and coaches’ offices. They began the tour laying a brick on the front side of the building and concluded the day sharing a moment with members of the swimming & diving teams.

"When I was on the swimming team at Texas A&M (1966-70), I could never have imagined having the opportunity to contribute back to the swimming & diving program with this expansion to our current world-class natatorium," said Hank Paup, Class of 1970. "The addition of locker rooms, coaches’ offices and training facilities will greatly enhance the resources our student-athletes need to train and compete at the highest level. Anne and I are honored to be in a position to share some of our lifelong blessings in order to lead on this project."

 

The facility is scheduled to be completed this fall, with a grand opening slated for January 2021. Remaining in the same location, the facility project will provide significant upgrades and additions that will allow the teams to be in a central location and feature new locker rooms, coaches’ offices, an athletic training room area, dryland training space and fueling station.
 
The most noticeable change will be the addition of a highly-visible exterior lobby that will provide student-athletes, coaches and fans with a designated entrance, separate from that of the main Recreation Center. The lobby will showcase A&M's history and accomplishments, featuring graphics and a large, built-in trophy case.
 
The team locker rooms will see significant upgrades as each student athlete-will have a solid-surface locker with wet and dry storage areas. The locker rooms will be accessible off the pool deck and feature a wet storage area upon entry. The men's and women's locker rooms will be separated by a shared 840 square-foot team lounge and fueling station. A large sectional sofa, TV, tables and chairs will fill the lounge area, while a center island, custom snack display, refrigerator and separate pantry on the other side of the room will put a plethora of healthy snacks and refueling options in arms-reach for student-athletes on the go.
 
A 1,000 square-foot, rubber flooring athletic training room and rehab space will be added in the Paup Pavilion. It will include a hydrotherapy room, space for rehab equipment, athletic trainers offices, a physicians exam room and TVs. The hydrotherapy room will feature two custom in-ground hot and cold plunge pools.
 
The Aggies will add a dryland training space that will include a 20'x25' in-ground foam pit with three diving boards, as well as a 16'-6"x42' tumbling area with a gymnastics spring floor. A 10'x17' in-ground trampoline pit and a 12'x15' above-ground landing mat with two diving boards will be added for top-level diving training.
 
Coaches offices, coaches locker rooms and visiting locker rooms round out the project. Seven coaches offices as well as a conference room will be added off the entryway to the building and put the coaches and student-athletes under the same roof for the first time. The visiting locker rooms will see renovations similar to the A&M team locker rooms, allowing more designated space for visiting teams and club teams.

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