Kentucky Swimming and Diving coach suspended pending NCAA investigation, per report

Is there trouble at the Lancaster Aquatic Center? SwimSwam, which covers competitive swimming, reports that University of Kentucky Swimming and Diving coach Lars Jorgensen has been suspended from the program since early May pending an investigation into potential NCAA compliance rules violations. One source told the outlet that the entire coaching staff was suspended for one week in May but all have returned except for associate head coach Michael Camper, who has resigned after five seasons.

Camper’s departure comes two years after he was promoted from assistant to associate head coach of the Wildcats. Prior to arriving at Kentucky in 2018, the Virginia native and former NC State standout served as an assistant at Pitt. Camper did not respond to SwimSwam’s requests for comment, but his LinkedIn profile indicates he recently took a new job outside of the swimming world as a territory manager for Gardner Inc., a lawn equipment distributor.

According to the source, Jorgensen was also suspended for Kentucky’s season opener vs. Texas A&M last November. Per the report, the team was not told of the issues with the staff until April 30, the day after the transfer portal closed for women’s swimmers, and each had to participate in interviews with Kentucky’s compliance department as part of the investigation. Kentucky did not respond to SwimSwam’s request for comment.

Jorgensen, who swam for Team USA in the 1998 Olympics in Seoul, just finished his 10th season as Kentucky’s Swimming and Diving Coach. In 2021, the women’s team won its first-ever SEC title, for which Jorgensen took home SEC Women’s Swimming Coach of the Year honors. Since Jorgensen took over in 2012, Kentucky has had nine straight Top 25 team finishes at the NCAA Championships, not including the canceled 2020 NCAA Championships.

For more, I’ll direct you to SwimSwam. The comments section is something else.