CORNER FLAG: Fix Boksburg Stadium and stop denying athletes access
Sometimes, athletes are denied access to the track because the field is booked for soccer.
I sat on the Southern side of the grass embankment inside the Boksburg Stadium on January 26, 2013, and saw a young Elroy Gelant win the 12km national cross-country trials.
Gelant was in sublime form. He controlled the race from the start line and was untroubled when he beat Kgosi Tsosane and Desmond Mokgobu.
It was my first time inside the Boksburg Stadium, and in reality, I wasn’t there for the cross-country trials. I had come to watch a friend train for the para-athletes’ nationals.
The stadium was open for use despite the national event. It was teeming with athletes of all disciplines.
I remember walking on the blue tartan track, taking a detour to the long jump pits and the discus and javelin cages. I thought it was one of the best athletics fields in the province.
It was, and to this day, I still hold the same view.
I became a frequent visitor whenever CGA hosted events. I witnessed Ryan Mphahlele, Maxine Chaumeton, and Precious Mashele reach their prime in the 2021 and 2022 seasons.
But the stadium hasn’t hosted a CGA league meeting since 2022, except for the race walking champs in January.
What changed? Is the stadium not up to national or international standards?
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We’ve received many complaints from clubs and athletes about the facility’s mounting administration and structural problems.
Sometimes, athletes are denied access to the track because the field is booked for soccer, apparently. Why schedule soccer on an athletics field during peak season when several football grounds surround the facility?
Where should Thato Sesoko do her track work when she’s denied access to the only world-class athletics facility in the Far East?
Sesoko excels at cross-country but struggles in the 800m because there’s no athletics track in Daveyton. The only one available to her is at Boksburg Stadium. But she’s being denied access to accommodate football.
This happens when support at a grassroots level gets blamed for our lack of success at a senior level. How will athletics development thrive when municipalities deny athletes access to facilities?
It’s an Olympic year, so athletes need access to facilities to train. Some need to do speed sessions for the Comrades Marathon. Others also need to prepare correctly for the track and field nationals.
Are athletes barred because the CoE wants to hide its failures to maintain the stadium?
On March 19, I returned to the same spot I sat in 11 years ago. While the main pavilion is still intact, much has changed.
The track is not as majestic as when I first saw it. Parts of the tartan near the long jump pits and other parts are peeling off. There are also water leaks on the field.
As I stood there, a municipal employee was marking the field for a soccer match. So, I asked myself if I would ever see Gelant win another national title. Probably not.
But one thing is clear – the facility is slowly decaying.
Maybe it’s one of the reasons it’s no longer in the conversation when CGA and ASA select venues for their events.
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