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Kenneth G. Langone Athletics & Recreation Center
Kenneth G. Langone Athletics & Recreation Center Officially Dedicated Friday, April 25, 2003 The Bucknell University Department of Athletics and Recreation prides itself on setting the standard of excellence when it comes to success both on the playing fields and in the classroom. With 10 Patriot League Presidents' Cups in 13 years, annual top-10 national rankings in graduation rates, including the nation's top-ranking in 2003, 106 Verizon Academic All-Americans in 33 years and 93 Patriot League Scholar-Athletes in 13 years, Bucknell is clearly at the head of the class in terms of upholding the scholar-athlete model. The addition of the Kenneth G. Langone Athletics and Recreation Center, one of the finest collegiate athletics and recreation facilities of its kind in the nation, will help ensure the continuation of that success. The facility enhances each of Bucknell's 26 varsity athletics programs and greatly expands the scope of its growing intramural and recreational sports offerings. A visually appealing structure located along Moore Avenue on the "downhill" side of campus, the Langone Athletics and Recreation Center was designed to reach out to all members of the campus community, including the student body, varsity student-athletes, faculty, staff and alumni. Three primary venues lie within the facility: the Arthur D. Kinney Jr. Natatorium, the 4,000-seat Gary A. Sojka Pavilion and the Krebs Family Fitness Center. Other features include a new location for the Bucknell Athletics Hall of Fame, a display of Bucknell's Congressional Medal of Honor recipients, a sports medicine and athletic training suite, classrooms, modern offices for coaches and staff and increased locker room space for varsity and recreational athletes.
The facility is named in honor of Ken Langone, a 1957 Bucknell graduate who, along with his wife Elaine, pledged $11 million toward the center's construction. Langone was a member of the university Board of Trustees from 1980 to 1996. One of the special qualities of the Langone Athletics and Recreation Center is the manner in which it supplements the pre-existing facilities. The brand new construction surrounds Gerhard Fieldhouse and historic Davis Gymnasium, which has been restored as a competition venue for the Bison volleyball team, as well as intramural, recreation and other varsity practice activities. As Bucknell continues to strive toward its mission of setting the standard of excellence in college athletics, the Langone Athletics and Recreation Center becomes the centerpiece in an already impressive cache of athletics facilities that includes the 13,100-seat Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium and its newly installed FieldTurf and 8-lane track surface; the scenic Bucknell University Golf Club; Depew Field, the home of the Bison baseball team; the spacious West Fields for softball, soccer and other club and intramural activities; and Graham Field, dedicated on September 20, 2003, a brand new artificial turf playing surface for the Bison field hockey team. Here is a closer look behind the walls of the Kenneth G. Langone Athletics and Recreation Center.
The third area, the Berger Family Weight Room, sits on the former site of Freas-Rooke Pool, and is used for instructional free-weight training and varsity workouts. The entire fitness area is supplemented by the "Bison Stop," a nutritional center with café seating in the main lobby.
Natatorium amenities include seating for 500 spectators, restrooms, separated varsity and visiting team locker rooms, a poolside classroom, sauna, steam room and concession stands. Already Kinney Natatorium has played host to two major events - the 2003 Patriot League Swimming and Diving Championships and the 2003 Southern Division Women's Water Polo Championship - drawing rave reviews at both. The facility proved to be quite a home pool advantage for Bucknell, which became the first institution in league history to capture both the men's and women's swimming and diving championships in the same season. A total of 20 meet records and 16 league records fell that weekend.
Behind the scenes, on the floor level, Sojka Pavilion provides a green room for performance acts and other functions, a catering kitchen for special events, ticket windows, locker room space for home and visiting teams and officials, and a loading dock capable of accommodating team buses and production trucks for televised events. Three nationally televised basketball games have already been aired from Sojka Pavilion in the 2003 season, including men's basketball games against Navy and Holy Cross on DirecTV as part of the Patriot League TV package, and a women's game against Navy that was televised on ESPN2.
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