NMU, USOC Continue Partnership
Northern and the United States Olympic Committee have renewed a contract to maintain an Olympic training site on campus. Along with the new contract comes a new name for the facility. It is now called the NMU Olympic Training Site in place of the former U.S. Olympic Education Center (USOEC).
“We are pleased to continue playing an important role in the development and education of elite athletes training for the Olympics,” said NMU President David Haynes. “While the training site has changed over the years, the goal to provide high-quality educational opportunities to world-class athletes has not.”
NMU is one of 16 U.S. Olympic training sites throughout the nation. There are 43 Greco-Roman wrestlers and 26 weightlifters who live and train on campus while attending the university. Since NMU first partnered with the USOC in 1985, it has hosted long- or short-term training for 29 sports, ranging from archery to wrestling, with about 25,000 athletes from more than 40 countries participating.
NMU’s Olympic center was the site of numerous Junior National Championships in boxing. In short-track speedskating, it was the site of a 2003 World Cup and the 2006 Olympic Trials. Nearly 70 athletes with NMU training site ties have earned U.S. Olympic Team berths, including seven Greco-Roman wrestlers and one in women’s weightlifting. Twenty-four athletes affiliated with the Northern site have captured 35 Olympic medals.
“NMU has a long history of supporting the U.S. Olympic movement and we’re happy to have the university continue to play a role in developing American wrestlers and weightlifters for national and international competition,” said Alicia McConnell, USOC director of training sites and community partnerships. “Marquette and the university community have been very supportive of the Olympic sports programs and athletes who have trained at Northern over the decades. Additionally, NMU continues to offer an outstanding educational opportunity for young athletes who want to earn a university degree while training at the elite level.”
Academically, resident athletes have earned 11 master’s, 91 bachelor’s and four associate degrees, as well as nine certificates, from NMU. Another 43 have earned Marquette Senior High School diplomas.