Irving Gymnasium
| Irving Gymnasium | |
|---|---|
Irving Gym during Deconstruction
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| General information | |
| Type | Physical fitness facility |
| Location | Ball State University Corner of Neely & McKinley Avenue Muncie, IN 47306 |
| Named for | Irving Family (Irving Brothers Sand and Gravel) |
| Completed | 1962 |
| Demolished | 2009 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Walter Scholar & Associates Lafayette, Indiana |
| Other information | |
| Seating capacity | 4,200 |
Irving Gymnasium was an indoor athletics facility on the campus of Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, USA. Opened in 1962 with a capacity of 6,600 spectators, it hosted primarily Ball State Cardinals basketball and volleyball games until Worthen Arena opened in 1992. It hosted the 1972 and 1976 NCAA Men's Volleyball Championship games.
In 2008, Irving Gymnasium closed to undergo renovations for the new Student Recreation and Wellness Center. The Student Recreation and Wellness Center has since opened and offers 5 basketball courts, an indoor turf building for indoor football and soccer, a rock climbing wall, an expanded weight lifting and cardio equipment space, an 1/8 suspended walking/jogging track, a Quiznos and space devoted to yoga and martial arts.
Presidential hopeful Robert F. Kennedy spoke in Irving Gymnasium on April 4, 1968 to a crowd of 12,000 people, almost three times the seating capacity. The university only had 7,000 seats to offer which left 5,000 students to stand during Kennedy's half-hour speech. A little over an hour after his speech, on the way to another campaign stop in Indianapolis, Kennedy learned of Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination.
President Barack Obama made a stop in Irving Gymnasium on April 12, 2008, on his campaign trail, 40 years and one week after Kennedy's speech in Irving Gym in 1968.
Coordinates: 40°12′19″N 85°24′21″W / 40.20528°N 85.40583°W
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