CHRISTCHURCH BID FOR EMPIRE GAMES

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30073, 6 March 1963, Page 12

CHRISTCHURCH BID FOR EMPIRE GAMES

A permanent committee will be set up in Christchurch to seek the holding of the British Empire Games in the city in either 1970 or 1974. This decision was made last evening by a meeting of representatives of sporting associations, local bodies, and other organisations convened by the Canterbury Progress League. Messrs B. J. Drake, J. E. Millar, and E. H. Williams were elected to a sub-com-mittee to draft rules for the permanent body. The meeting also received estimates from the athletics, swimming, and bowling bodies of the cost of providing suitable facilities for these sports. Reporting for the Canterbury Athletic Centre, Mr E. Lunn said that an all-weather track with seating accommodation for up to 50,000 would be required. Such a track, and its surrounds for field ■events, could cost as much as £20,000, but this could be reduced considerably if local materials could be used. The cost of seating was not known, but would probably be high.

Alternative An alternative was the construction of an all-weather track at Lancaster Park, where the seating was already erected. The track could be removed after the games, as was done at the Melbourne Cricket Ground after the 1956 Olympic Games. This would probably also cost about £20,000, and after the games there would be no track to show for the expense, said Mr Lunn.

The chairman (Mr Drake) said that recent announcements about the City Council’s intentions on the new Queen Elizabeth II Park at New Brighton had introduced new possibilities. He asked that there should not be too much diffusion of energy. Mr P. J. Skellerup, chairman of the City Council’s reserves committee, said that in his opinion an all-weather track would be the first item for construction at the new park.

Lawn bowls would require only about £lOO, said a letter from the secretary of the Christchurch Bowling Centre (Mr J. Moffatt). This would be for the construction of temporary stands. Several bowling greens in Christchurch would be quite suitable for such a tournament, Mr T. A. Leitch said.

Much money would be needed for swimming pools if the Empire Games were to be held in Christchurch, said the Canterbury Swimming Centre’s representative, Mr J. H. Johnson. The experience of previous Empire meetings showed that two pools would be needed—a competition pool and a warmup pool. These would have to be close together, which meant that the Centennial Pool could not be considered except for diving. Mr Johnson estimated that a competition pool would cost about £50,000, and a warmup pdol £32,000. These prices did not include money to be spent on stands, dressing sheds, and other facilities.

To a question from Mr Drake. Mr Johnson said that plans were at present under consideration for the construction of pools at Waltham, Papanui, and Jellie Park.

“If there are plans afoot and they could be modified to fit in with our own more ambitious plans, now is the time to do something about it,” said Mr Drake.