2 Gopher Swimmers Hit By Gunfire In Downtown Minneapolis
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – Two members of the University of Minnesota men's swimming team are recovering after being shot early Saturday in downtown Minneapolis.
The U's athletic department says the two men were hit by stray gunfire after ordering a pizza. They were waiting for their ride home when they were shot near 3rd Street and 2nd Avenue.
In a phone interview on Monday, one of the student-athletes who was shot says he is recovering after a bullet penetrated the inside of his right leg just above the knee.
He said he and five other friends connected to the University of Minnesota men's swimming team had pizza in hand and were waiting for an Uber shortly after 1 a.m. when gunfire erupted. The student said they only heard what they thought were fireworks and didn't realize it was gunfire until noticing his injury. Another student-athlete was shot in the elbow.
Both are expected to face a long recovery process that involves lots of physical therapy. The student who spoke with WCCO says he is concerned about the trauma his friends experienced by witnessing the shooting. The university offers sports psychology services to all who were involved in the incident.
"In situations where extra services are needed, we handle those appropriately and connect our student-athletes with additional specialists," a spokesperson with the U said.
Law enforcement has beefed up patrols in downtown Minneapolis because of recent gun violence. The Minneapolis Police Department, Metro Transit and Hennepin County Sheriff's deputies are working together to keep downtown safe.
So far, police have made no arrests in the shooting.
From July 21-28, there were 15 people wounded by gunshots citywide. The downtown precinct had 2.
Anyone with information regarding the shooting is asked to call police.
