Hillsborough Sun

DURHAM, N.H.—A $2 million gift over five years from former University of New Hampshire ski team captain Tom Putnam will add to the endowment he established 15 years ago to support the team and launch fundraising for a ski facility.

Putnam will contribute $1 million to the endowment, which funds scholarships, coaches' salaries, training camps and equipment for the team, and $1 million to a new facility that will have locker rooms and lounges for the men’s and women’s alpine and Nordic ski teams at the Field House as well as a waxing room and storage for equipment.

“I’ve enjoyed skiing my entire life,” said Putnam. “Skiing is New Hampshire’s sport and I feel the state university should have a strong skiing program. That’s why I’ve always supported the team and why I’m making this investment in UNH skiing.”

Putnam skied for UNH in the mid 1960s and was captain of the freshman ski team before leaving the university to join the U.S. Army.

“Tom Putnam’s transformational gift is the catalyst for creating a new space to house our nationally ranked alpine and Nordic ski teams,” said Allison Rich, director of athletics. “Tom’s generosity mirrors UNH Athletics’ commitment to providing an extraordinary student-athlete experience. The skiing program embodies our relentless pursuit of athletic excellence and academic achievement, and new facilities are vital to sustaining that success while ensuring the physical and mental health of our student-athletes.”

UNH finished sixth at the 2022 NCAA Championships, which represented the best result—and 29th Top 10 finish—in the 40 years ski coordinator Cory Schwartz has guided the program. Nordic skier Jasmine Lyons (Ottawa, Ontario) earned two All-American honors, men's alpine skier Bastian Meisen (Munich, Germany) collected All-American Second Team in giant slalom and women's alpine skier Zoe Michael (Sydney, Australia) recorded All-American Second Team in slalom to give the Wildcats four 2022 NCAA All-Americans.

For more information on how to support the ski facility project, contact the Athletics Development office at (603) 862-2592.

The University of New Hampshire inspires innovation and transforms lives in our state, nation and world. More than 16,000 students from all 50 states and 71 countries engage with an award-winning faculty in top-ranked programs in business, engineering, law, health and human services, liberal arts and the sciences across more than 200 programs of study. A Carnegie Classification R1 institution, UNH partners with NASA, NOAA, NSF and NIH, and received $260 million in competitive external funding in FY21 to further explore and define the frontiers of land, sea and space.
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