TOLEDO, Ohio – The University of Toledo officially announced women's rowing as its 17th varsity sport in a news conference at the Glass City Pavilion on the riverfront in downtown Toledo on Wednesday. The Rockets will begin competition in the 2025-26 school year.
 
"Today is about showing an example of an athletic department that's not afraid to be bold," said Vice President and Director of Athletics Bryan B. Blair. "We want to be uniquely Toledo and take advantage of all this great community and University has to offer.

"We are planting our flag literally and figuratively in downtown Toledo to showcase all the great things that are happening at our University. We are also happy to be a part of the over $200 million in investments that are happening in downtown Toledo. I think the best thing about this first step is that the best is yet to come with a University and community that's on the rise."

Toledo Women's Rowing will compete at the NCAA Division I level and in the Mid-American Conference, which is adding women's rowing to its roster of sports in 2025-26. A head coach will be hired this fall, with a full year of acclimation leading into regular-season competition in the fall of 2025. The full squad will feature approximately 50-60 student-athletes on its roster. 

"We are going to be adding high-achieving young ladies who will be adding so much to our campus and the vibrancy in our athletic department," added Blair. "We have a culture of excellence that we want to extend to this new program, and we have a department that's ready to embrace the addition of rowing.  It gives us the opportunity to pursue a MAC Championship in another sport which we intend to do like we do in our other 16 sports."

Toledo Women's Rowing will practice and compete on the Maumee River and will utilize the Philip LeBoutillier, Jr. Memorial Boathouse in International Park in downtown Toledo. The boathouse is owned by Metroparks Toledo and is operated by the Toledo Rowing Foundation. 
 
The Philip LeBoutillier, Jr. Memorial Boathouse in International Park is part of the transformational Glass City Metropark and Riverwalk project. The $200 million public-private initiative will build a landmark waterfront Metropark and world-class riverfront destination. This initiative will create 300 acres of new and revitalized greenspace, and a five-mile, multi-purpose trail that will connect six downtown and East Toledo neighborhoods, corporate campuses, small businesses, parks and cultural institutions.  
 
The Toledo Rowing Foundation (TRF) was founded in 1984 with the goal of fostering, supporting, and developing amateur athletes for competitive rowing. In February of 2021, TRF began management of the Philip LeBoutillier, Jr. Memorial Boathouse, and recently entered into a long-term partnership with Metroparks Toledo, enabling TRF to continue to support rowing on the Maumee River.
 

What They Are Saying About Toledo Women's Rowing
 
"Adding women rowing not only brings together community partnerships, but it adds a sport that helps elevate both University of Toledo Athletics and the Mid-American Conference on a national stage.  Equally, if not more importantly, it has a direct and transformational impact on enrollment and student success."

• Matt Schroeder, University of Toledo Interim President
   

"I commend the leadership of this community and what they're building and what it will do for improving the quality of life and bringing economic development to Toledo. I want to congratulate the University of Toledo on the addition of women rowing and continuing to grow opportunities for female scholar-athletes. I also commend the vision of Director of Athletics Bryan Blair and others, as well as the collaborative efforts to bring to life the vision of a NCAA Division I women's rowing program."

• Dr. Jon Steinbrecher, Mid-American Commissioner
   

"From the first time we started talking about this project, what we envisioned for Glass City Metropark and Glass City Riverwalk was a place where the community would be able to come together. We wanted many players, organizations, institutions and partners to be able to activate the core of our downtown in ways our community has never seen before. We wanted the Riverwalk to be a dynamic destination which fundamentally had the ability to reposition our region's identity, and help attract and retain talent in Northwest Ohio. This partnership checks every one of those boxes."

• Dave Zenk, Executive Director of Metroparks Toledio
   

 "Today marks a significant milestone as our sport gains national attention. We're excited to collaborate with the University of Toledo to bring the Rockets to the Maumee River. We wish them great success in their inaugural season and beyond, and we look forward to them bringing home a MAC Championship in the future."

• Mike Dibling, Chair of the Toledo Rowing Foundation

 
Toledo Women's Rowing FAQ

Why is The University of Toledo adding women's rowing as a varsity sport?
Adding women's rowing will:
1.       Attract academically high-achieving female students to our University, thereby positively impacting student enrollment. 
2.       Provide additional opportunities for high school student-athletes to experience the benefits of participating in a varsity sport.  
3.       Strengthen the relationship between the University, Metroparks Toledo and the Toledo Rowing Foundation. 
4.       Bring a greater UToledo "footprint" into downtown Toledo, through, among other things, the hosting of numerous large-scale races on one of the city's most unique attributes, the Maumee River.  

When is The University of Toledo adding women's rowing as a varsity sport?
Women's rowing will begin competition in the 2025-26 season.

Where will Toledo Women's Rowing compete?
Toledo Women's Rowing will train and compete downtown on the Maumee River. The program will use the Philip LeBoutillier, Jr. Memorial Boathouse in International Park.

Who will Toledo Women's Rowing compete against?
Women's rowing is currently offered at 89 other Division I universities and colleges. Toledo will compete in the Mid-American Conference along with Eastern Michigan, UMass, and new affiliate members Delaware, High Point and Temple. The first MAC Championship Meet will be held in the spring of 2026. The winner will receive an automatic berth into the NCAA Championships.

When will a head coach be hired?
A search for our first women's rowing head coach is underway.  When hired, that coach will begin recruiting student-athletes for the 2025-26 school year.  

How many student-athletes will be on the roster?
 At this time, we anticipate that approximately 50-60 student-athletes will have the opportunity to compete for the Toledo Women's Rowing team. 

Where will Toledo Women's Rowing recruiting base come from?
Toledo Women's Rowing will recruit locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. Several area high schools sponsor girls' rowing including Notre Dame Academy, St. Ursula Academy, Central Catholic High School and Perrysburg High School.

How will Toledo Women's Rowing be funded? Will resources be reallocated from other varsity sports?
No resources would be reallocated from Toledo's current 16 varsity sports. Instead, funding will come from self-generated revenue streams, partnerships, and philanthropy. Rowing has relatively small start-up/infrastructure costs compared to other sports. In addition, rowing facilities already exist in the Philip LeBoutillier, Jr. Memorial Boathouse in International Park in downtown Toledo. 

Are the rowing facilities part of the MetroParks' investment in the Glass City Metroparks & Riverwalk? 
Yes, the Philip LeBoutillier, Jr. Memorial Boathouse is located in International Park. Metroparks took ownership of International Park earlier this year to expand Glass City Metropark and complete the East Toledo stretch of Riverwalk. The Glass City Metropark and Riverwalk project is a $200 million public-private initiative to build a landmark waterfront Metropark and world-class riverfront destination. This initiative will create 300 acres of new and revitalized green space, naturalize the shoreline, and will reduce storm water runoff to the Maumee River, the largest watershed on the Great Lakes. A five-mile, multi-purpose trail will connect six downtown and East Toledo neighborhoods, corporate campuses, small businesses, parks and cultural institutions. 

Why is The University of Toledo adding women's rowing over other sports? 
After a review of several NCAA-sponsored sports, women's rowing stood out as having the greatest positive impact on the University and for our student-athletes. Plus, women's rowing has relatively low startup and operational costs, which made it an attractive addition.