The Venice Indoor Pool finally reopened this week, allowing Venice aquatic teams to practice and host matches close to campus.
Over the course of the last four years, the facility has undergone off-and-on renovations, which impacted the facility’s ability to serve teams like boys’ and girls’ water polo and swimming.
Issues related to the pool included American Disability Act requirements and redoing locker rooms, according to athletic director Robin Hunt.
When the pool was not open, Venice’s aquatic teams had to look for other ways to stay in their best shape and practice.
In the past, Venice teams had to resort to using pools in places like Westchester, Westwood, and Mid-City. This became a challenge as the teams had limited time in the water, leaving players with the responsibility of staying well-conditioned on their own.
With the pool’s recent reopening, the Venice aquatic teams will now have the opportunity to use their own pool.
“Now that we have a pool to practice in, our chemistry will improve a lot, and our conditioning will get so much better,” said senior Luke Coulter, a boys’ water polo captain with senior Jesus Santiago.
In their first home match of the season, the boys’ water polo team secured a 12-6 victory against LACES.
“The team is stoked to have the pool back,” Coulter said.
Problems resulting from the delays in construction were not only limited to the Venice aquatics teams.
“We’ve always had P.E. classes in the swim pool,” Hunt said.
But now, due to the reopening of the pool, Hunt said that P.E. classes and the Venice High community will now be able to access the indoor pool.
“As far as I know, it’s fully usable for us, and the community is happy,” Hunt said.
