Athletics Ireland determined to build two indoor arenas in Dublin

ATHLETICS IRELAND are to press to have two indoor arenas build in Dublin, Chief Executive Brendan Hackett revealed yesterday.

Presenting the plan that will take Irish athletics to 2008 and beyond, he said his ambition would be to have one indoor athletics arena in North Dublin and another in South Dublin.

“I was in Tallinn recently and they have and they have four indoor arenas in that city which is considerably smaller than the City of Dublin,” he said. “And they have six in total in Estonia so I see no reason why we should not press to have two built in Dublin.” To date the only permanent indoor track on the Island of Ireland is the facility in Nenagh where Sean Naughton’s brainchild has withstood the test of time.

The document entitled “From First Steps to Full Stride” maps an exciting journey in pursuit of medals and enjoyment much of the plan has already been evident through recent successes at major international events.

While medals from the European cross-country championships, the European Youth Olympics and the World University Games highlight the advances made over the past year, it was the confident performance of the elite team at the world championships in Osaka that provided the proof the formula is working.

“First Steps to Full Stride articulates the vision of Athletics Ireland for the coming years but it also reflects on the developments of recent years and sets out to show the current state of the Association,” Hackett said.

“It is also a visionary document as it sets out how we would like to see athletics develop. As a nation we face many challenges in community health. Athletics offers all sections of society an opportunity to engage in regular physical activity.”