SWANNANOA, N.C. — Warren Wilson College in western North Carolina has seen various changes in and out of the classroom in the past year.

What You Need To Know

  • Come this fall, Warren Wilson College will have a women's triathlon competition team

  • According to USA Triathlon, this will make the college one of only 14 Division III schools to compete in the sport

  • The college will also begin a new track and field program this fall

While the year included the discontinuation of five academic majors due to economic obstacles, grant funding from the USA Triathlon Foundation has allowed for the growth of the college's athletic opportunities and student experience, specifically a women's triathlon team.

According to USA Triathlon, this will make Warren Wilson College one of only 14 Division III schools to compete in the sport. 

“Sometimes I am in one sport, and I wish I could be doing three other sports,” Warren Wilson College student athlete Emily Fredrickson said. “So, a triathlon is great!”

The student athletes are already preparing for the upcoming season, set to begin competing this fall.

“We received that grant to start the women's triathlon program here, which is an NCAA emerging sport, meaning it's an up and coming sport, giving more women the opportunity to compete in collegiate competition,” Warren Wilson Coach Chris Ramirez said.

“I've wanted to do Ironman, stuff like that before and I haven't, but Chris [Ramirez] just came up to me and he was like, ‘Do you want to do it?’ And I was like, ‘you know what? Like, why not?’” student athlete Ocala Aerni said.

“What I always enjoyed about cycling was, I can push myself and do things that originally seemed too hard to do,” Fredrickson said.

The growing team has geared up and is ready to dive in.

“It's like you're floating, and I just love that feeling,” Fredrickson said.

Ramirez hopes this latest addition to the college experience helps propel Warren Wilson College and women’s college sports forward.

“I'm hopeful we grow not just in athletics, but as a country at large in the workplace, of giving women the same opportunities that men have, and I think athletics is a great place for that to happen,” Ramirez said. “So, excited to be on the forefront of that as well.”

“It’s a little more comforting, because it’s like, women can do it too!” Frederickson said.

Warren Wilson College also plans to offer a new track and field program beginning this fall.