The University of Maryland athletic department has decided to eliminate seven sports after failing to raise enough money for the “Save Our Sports” fundraising campaign. The deadline was June 30, 2012.

Effective July 1, the following sports have been discontinued in College Park: men’s cross country, men’s indoor track and field, acrobatics and tumbling, men’s and women’s swimming and diving, water polo, and men’s tennis.

Men’s outdoor track and field was the sole survivor of the cuts after raising enough money to operate for the upcoming season. The team, which will compete with 14 student-athletes, is coached by Andrew Valmon, who will also act as coach for Team USA in the upcoming Olympic Games in London. The program will need to continue its fundraising efforts in order to operate past 2013.

Athletic Director Kevin Anderson issued the following statement:

We understand the pain and disappointment this has caused our student-athletes and their families. The deliberations of the President’s Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics were painstaking. No one wanted to come to this conclusion, but our fund-raising efforts in these other sports have not been successful. I personally want to thank everyone for their efforts. Our student-athletes and coaches competed this season with pride and excellence in a difficult situation.

As we mentioned back in November, all athletic scholarship commitments and affected coaches’ contracts will be honored. University President Wallace D. Loh remarked, “The decision to reduce the number of varsity sports was a difficult and painful one, but I believe that our athletics department will continue its excellent work in preparing our student-athletes for success on and off the field.”