One school principal has described the recent condemning of stands located at the country’s sole track & field facility, the YASCO Sports Complex, as “disappointing” adding that inspections should have been carried out at the venue months before this weekend’s Coca Cola Inter-schools Championships.
The Ministry of Sports, on Wednesday issued a release stating that following inspections by the country’s Ministry of Works Department, patrons will not be allowed to utilise the stands during the three-day event starting Friday.
Collin Greene, principal of Princess Margaret School, believes the development could have a negative impact on spectator turnout.
“Our athletes train hard for the year and it is one of the few opportunities they get to perform in front of a good-sized audience. The school has invested a lot into its preparation for this event; and we’re just very disappointed over the development because one way or the other, I just believe we are going to be short-changing the young athletes who have already made so much effort,” he said.
“The remarkable thing is that I believe that this inter-schools would have had so many good match-ups worth seeing where the individual athletes are concerned,” Greene added.
Director of Sports Heather Samuel-Daley announced that the event would now be free to the general public following the announcement that there will be no seating available.
“We are making the event free from Friday to Sunday but of course, we still have to do our security checks at the gate so that is still in place but there will be no seating. If they are not removed in time for the weekend’s activities we are asking persons to abide by the determination of the engineers that the seating is unfit to be used and to avoid sitting on them,” she said.
The turn of events means that patrons viewing from the western end of the facility would have to stand on the concrete platform behind the wire fence.
More in today’s Daily Observer.