Monday, February 23 – Government is seeking the cooperation of people who use the rubberised track at the A. O. Shirley Recreation Grounds to adhere to the guidelines set out to help preserve the facility.

Assistant Secretary in the Premier’s Office with responsibility for projects Mrs. Elvia Smith-Maduro and Sports Officer in the Department of Youth Affairs and Sports Mr. Dean Greenaway were guests on a recent GIS Radio Report which sought to highlight the need to safe-guard this major investment.

Mrs. Smith-Maduro said the list of 11 guidelines includes the need for appropriate footwear to be worn at all times. Encouraging athletes to wear “the proper spikes on the track for competition,” she said “it is very important to preserve the surface; we do not want to have persons out there walking in high-heeled shoes which would penetrate the surface and damage it.”

In addition to proper footwear, persons are being urged not to drive vehicles or use bicycles, food and drink on the track surface. “The facility represents a huge investment by Government and we want to get value for money and ensure that it remains around for a considerable amount of time,” Mrs. Smith-Maduro added.

Emphasising the need to preserve the facility, she noted that the existence of the track and the fact that it has received Class II Certification from the International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF) has helped to put the BVI on the map and will also help promote sports tourism for the Territory.

Reinforcing the comments made by the Assistant Secretary, Mr. Greenaway noted that athletes are already recording faster times. “It is a competition surface and it is important to take proper care of it and treat it as a national treasure because it helps to build pride; it is going to help develop our athletes and we will be able to host various types of competition on the track,” Mr. Greenaway said. 
 

Another important guideline deals with lane usage and the closure of lanes one and two to the general public. “We want to minimise the use of those lanes on the regular day-to-day basis and just have those lanes in use when we have competition or when athletes are training in preparation for competition, whether locally, regionally or internationally,” Mrs. Smith-Maduro said. 

To this Mr. Greenaway added that “in tracks throughout the world, sometimes the first three lanes are blocked off because those are the lanes that get heavy usage particularly with the distance races.”

The Sports Officer also noted the importance of keeping the track clean. “When the track was opened, Tahesia Harrigan emphasised that we should keep it clean and from time to time you go in and you are seeing people using water bottles and just leaving them there,” he stated. 

Another important factor according to Mr. Greenaway is the adequate supervision of children to ensure proper use of the facility and the equipment provided. “I go in on afternoons and see kids over there jumping on the high jump bed and you cannot get adequate use out of the high jump bed when people are just over there using it as a trampoline––those kinds of things must be discouraged,” he stated firmly.

The guidelines are not intended to discourage the use of the facility but to help preserve it and ensure that future generations benefit from its existence. 

The rubberised track, officially opened in April 2008, constitutes a sizeable investment by the Government and symbolises its commitment to the development of youth and sports in the Territory.