November 11, 2016 (Anchorage, AK) – The University of Alaska (UofA) has reversed an earlier decision to stop funding its Nordic and alpine ski teams at the end of the 2016-7 academic year. We reported previously that the University wanted to de-fund skiing at both the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) and the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF). Indoor track and field at UAA would have also been de-funded; all are now spared from the axe.

“The ski teams at both UAA and UAF are safe for the time being, as the NCAA did not entertain the waiver request submitted by the University. I am really happy that the programs will continue to survive. Skiing is the ‘most Alaskan’ of all the sports in either athletic department – it is an outdoor, winter sport in a state that prides itself on its winters and on getting out and doing things. From that standpoint alone, I could not understand the reasoning for proposing that skiing be cut from the UAA and UAF athletic departments,” UAF Nordic ski team coach John Estle wrote SkiTrax. He is also an Alaska Cross Country Ski Hall of Fame inductee.

The University is struggling with major budget cuts and had requested a waiver from the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) to run less than the required 10 sports at UAA and UAF. Presently, the UAA has 13 sports and UAF has 10, in both cases including Nordic skiing. The UofA saw cutting Nordic and alpine ski teams, which collectively cost about $1 million annually, as the way forward. This provoked great outcry both inside and outside the ski community.

“It is not apparent that the highly-motivated group of people expressing their support for the (ski) programs made any difference in the outcome. With no NCAA waiver, UAF could not cut any sports without endangering the participation of their teams in post-season competition, which Rifle and Skiing normally compete in,” continued Estle.

“Maybe the expression of support made a difference in the UAA program surviving because at UAA it was possible to cut up to 3 teams without endangering the other sports’ eligibility for post-season play,” he added in apparent second-thought.

While skiing is safe for the short-term, the long-term prospects remain unclear. It remains unclear why skiing and athletics were targeted for elimination while other, more expensive sports were not targeted for cuts. Estle makes the point that many talented skiers come to UofA for its skiing programs; their tuition fees already cover part of the cost of these programs.

“I think it is important that the university system make some kind of statement about the long-term future of all athletics at both schools, so that coaches will want to stay with their programs, and so that they can recruit skiers who will not be worried about the program being eliminated after they arrive. It is difficult to keep credibility in the program when retention of the program is day-to-day or year-to-year.”

Alaska Dispatch here.
SkiTrax previous report here.