Games track

By Rebecca Fraser
CASEY Council has lost its bid to preserve the historic Commonwealth Games athletics track at the multi-million dollar sporting facility Casey Fields.
Council last September set its sights on having the all-weather track relocated from the MCG to the Cranbourne East facility at the conclusion of the 2006 Games.
However, in a disappointing blow, council was told this would not be possible because the track is set to be torn up and disposed of after Sunday night’s closing ceremony.
The move has angered Casey mayor Kevin Bradford, who said this week that securing the international quality track would have been a great coup for the city.
Cr Bradford said the track was to be torn up as a matter of urgency so the MCG ground could be resurfaced in time for the traditional Anzac Day clash between Collingwood and Essendon.
He said it was a shame that a piece of history was being lost because of one AFL match.
“I was told that when the Games finish on Sunday night it would have taken three to four weeks for the developers to roll up the track properly to avoid damage,” he said. “There would not be enough time to get the surface ready for the match. “I cannot see why the State Government would let the economic and historical benefits of relaying the track be pushed aside for one game of football.”
Cr Bradford said that while the athletics track from the 2000 Sydney Olympics had been relayed to another sporting venue in New South Wales, it appeared that Melbourne had forgotten about its own history.
“It is a real shame to throw this track away because it would have added more significance to an already important facility.”
Cr Bradford, who is also president of the Cranbourne Little Athletics, said the south east region was experiencing an incredible shortage of all-weather tracks and the Games surface could have helped alleviate this.
Spokesperson for Commonwealth Games Minister Justin Madden, Brent Hooley, said the track would not have been of a very high standard once removed.
“The rubber would have been stretched and cut,” he said.“It would need to be stored, then pieced back together and would never have returned to the same international, or high-quality standard, it was for the Commonwealth Games.”
Mr Hooley said the State Government was paying the AFL weekly compensation for keeping them off the MCG.
He said giving the MCG back to the AFL three to four weeks early would save the Government a great deal of money.
Mr Hooley said the Government planned to re-invest the funds into grassroots athletics.
A small portion of the track would be salvaged for posterity and located at the Australian Gallery of Sport, he said.