Olympic Park: Ready, Set, Go

Austadiums • Tuesday 29th April 2008

John Landy and Ron Clarke, two of Australia's greatest athletes, yesterday expressed their disappointment at State Government plans to move athletics from its traditional home at Olympic Park to a new venue at Albert Park.

Under the plans announced yesterday by Premier John Brumby and Minister for Sport James Merlino, Olympic Park will become a professional sports precinct. Melbourne will join Collingwood in being based there and Melbourne Storm and Melbourne Victory will be based at the rectangular stadium currently under construction.

The Victorian Institute of Sport will also move out of the 1956 Olympic swimming pool building, which it shares with Collingwood.

"It's a very sad day, as far as I'm concerned," Landy said. "(Olympic Park) is a superb location."

Much of Landy's athletics career was centred around the venue. He drew huge crowds to the twilight meetings in the run-up to the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games as he chased history's first sub-four minute mile. After a distinguished career in agricultural science, he then lived "across the river" for five years as the governor of Victoria.

Clarke echoed Landy, saying that the "athletics heritage" of Olympic Park meant a move was "like moving the MCG out to Waverley".

"Olympic Park is the place," Clarke added. "Moving anywhere else is just a great pity. It thumbs the nose at the community sport in favour of the big bucks."

The proposed move of athletics out of the precinct will sever the last remaining sporting link with the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. Although guarantees were never set into legislation, Olympic Park was set aside as the home of amateur sport in Melbourne following the Games.

The chairman of the Olympic Park committee of management at the time said this was because "(the committee) feels the present development of the area stems from the vision of amateur sportsmen here in seeking the Olympic Games and feels they should be rewarded".

"It's not binding," Landy said of the statement, "but the sentiment is clear. I don't think Albert Park, no matter how better it is in terms of facilities and viewing, will ever take the place of Olympic Park."

Tamsyn Lewis also spoke of the history of Olympic Park. Lewis has memories involving all members of her family -- brother Justin, mother Carolyn (nee Wright) and father Greg -- who have all competed there. "It's disappointing to think the history of athletics will disappear at that venue," Lewis said.

Lewis, who last month won a gold medal in the 800 metres at the world indoor championships, said she was "sitting on the fence" as to the proposed new venue.

"If the new complex is spectator-friendly and allows the sport to go ahead in leaps and bounds -- I think our sport has been struggling a bit since the Sydney Olympics -- then that would be a good thing. You never know, it might help promote the sport."

Details of the planned new state athletics centre, to be built at Bob Jane Stadium, are sketchy. No plans were published with the announcement. Neither Athletics Victoria, which is based at Olympic Park, nor Athletics Australia, whose annual showcase meeting is held there, would comment yesterday because although they have been in talks with the Government, they are yet to see the proposals.

A spokesperson for the Premier told The Age work was expected to start on the new venue, which will be shared with South Melbourne soccer club, some time this year. It will be a 5000-seat stadium with a capacity of 10,000 and is expected to cost $50 million. Melbourne's annual athletics meeting has drawn more than 10,000 people on several occasions.

One by one, the Olympic sports have disappeared from the Olympic Park precinct. The Olympic velodrome and cycling were first to go, replaced first by the greyhound track and a car park and now the rectangular stadium. The swimming pool became first a sports and entertainment centre and then the home of the VIS and, under its Collingwood name, the Lexus Centre.

Now, the one remaining Olympic sport appears to be on its way out, along with the state institute set up to assist all Olympic sports. Ironically, John Landy and Ron Clarke will stay. A statue commemorating the famous incident in the mile at the 1956 Australian championships, in which Landy went back to check on the fallen Clarke before chasing the field to win the race, will remain in Swan Street.

10 famous moments at Olympic Park

JOHN LANDY, DECEMBER, 1952 Run out in the heats of the 1952 Olympic 1500 metres, John Landy returns home with renewed ambition and comes out and runs a solo mile in 4:02.1. The chase for the world's first sub-four minute mile is on.

JOHN LANDY AND RON CLARKE, MARCH, 1956 The Australian championships. Landy sits mid-field instead of taking his customary leading role. Clarke is tripped, falls, and Landy's spikes crake his arm as he leaps over him Landy stops, checks how Clarke is, then regains the field to win.

RON CLARKE, DECEMBER, 1963 Clarke sets the first of many world records in winning the annual Zatopek 10,000 metres race.

CHARLENE RENDINA, FEBRUARY, 1976 With her training partner Judy Pollock setting the pace, Rendina sets an Australian record of 1:59.0 for 800 metres that stands to the present day.

SIMON DOYLE, FEBRUARY, 1991 Doyle wins the John Landy Mile at the NEC Classic in 3:51.54, the fastest run on Australian soil.

TIM FORSYTH, DECEMBER, 1991 High jumper Tim Forsyth's Australian record 2.31 metres. A few months after failing to make the final at the world championships, the lanky teenager flops over a national record in the unlikely setting of the Australian schools championships.

EMMA GEORGE, NOVEMBER, 1995 George sets a world record -- her first of many -- in the pole vault, clearing 4.28 metres late at night in an interclub meeting. It was the first world record in an Olympic discipline at Olympic Park in 30 years.

CATHY FREEMAN, FEBRUARY, 1996 Cathy Freeman breaks 50 seconds for the 400 for the first time, providing the highlight of Melbourne's first meeting with IAAF grand prix status.

CRAIG MOTTRAM, MARCH, 2006 In his last race before the Commonwealth Games, Mottram smashed the Oceania record for 2000 metres, running 4:50.76 for five laps of Olympic Park.

ASAFA POWELL, FEBRUARY, 2008 In doubt with a gashed knee until he warms up, the world's fastest man eases off the blocks before exploding to a 10.04 100 metres, the fastest run at Olympic Park.

Len Johnson
The Age

Olympic Park Stadium

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John Landy and Ron Clarke, two of Australia's greatest athletes, yesterday expressed their disappointment at State Government plans to move athletics from its traditional home at Olympic Park to a new venue at Albert Park.
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