In Deep Water

To the Editors of The Crimson:

In the March 6th article by Mark Doctoroff, The crimson attributes the resignation of Stephanie Walsh, the women's swim coach, to the actions of Joe Bernal, the men's coach. The reporting was inaccurate and prejudiced. As co-captain of the men's team, I feel compelled to respond to an article that presents such a poor image of our program and coach.

First of all, the article does not belong in The Crimson; if I want to read gossip, I'll buy The National Enquirer. The result of printing sour grapes can only be negative; neither the men's nor women's swim program will merit.

Secondly, the article is slanted. By the time the reader finishes with the sympathetic rendition of Walsh's and captain Sharon Beckman's comments, Coach Bernal's statements at the end of the article can only seem inadequate. Bernal's guilt has been established in the reader's mind before he is given a chance to defend himself. When Doctoroff states that "Bernal is about the only person involved who does not agree with this analysis," he only reveals the shallowness of his own journalism. The only comments besides Bernal's are Beckman's and Walsh's; if Doctoroff had bothered to contact any of the men's team or a substantial part of the women's team, he would have found that we disagree with his views as emphatically as Bernal does.

Finally, the article is inaccurate. Doctoroff claims that the "historic" animosity between the men's and women's programs has been fueled by the dislike between the two coaches. The animosity is historic; four years ago when I started swimming at Harvard, the two squads were barely civil to each other. Since Coach Bernal has been here, the relationship has improved. Instead of promoting animosity between the teams, he has actively discouraged it. At the start of this year, I was given a long talk by Bernal on ways to improve the relationship, with direct orders for our swimmers to "cool it". The captains the year before were given the same instructions.

Coach Bernal has also been charged with "meddling" with the coaching of the women's team; he has been accused of trying to "undermine" their program. This mystifies me. Bernal has never tried to entice Stephanie's swimmers away; if the women are dissatisfied with their own coach, it is more than likely due to a comparison between the abilities of the coaches involved. I can assure Doctoroff that neither Bernal nor the swimmers are engaged in a fifth-column cold war down at Blodgett pool. Ned Cahoon   Co-captain, Harvard Men's Swim Team