CONGRATS ALL AROUND

Congratulations to all those who participated in the very successful Combined event held over the past weekend. Despite the thunderstorms of Friday and Saturday over 90 competitors participated in a weekend of very high quality performances with a possible masters record being set (to be verified)

In particular congratulations and a big vote of thanks must go to Diane Calvert and her band of helpers who suggested the event and put it together and ensured it was a run in a very professional manner.   It is worth noting that the event was not originally scheduled on the calendar and Dianne approached the Board of Management re holding the event

We are delighted with the success of the event and look forward to making it an annual event on the ACT athletics calendar.  

Thanks must not only go to the organising committee but also those officials and volunteers who gave of their time over the weekend to help run the event

There was a very strong interstate contingent including representatives from Perth as well as from the AWD community

As a committee we are keen to hold events that meet the differing skill sets of our members and we hope that the Combined event and the Runners Shop distance events can become a permanent part of the AACT competition calendar.

It was gratifying to see the good numbers at the “Runners Shop” Mile events on 12 January – as with the 3km event last November Marty and Emily were the respective winners in the run up to qualifying events for the London Olympics.  Thank you again to Nick and the team at the Runners Shop for their generous support – the gift vouchers were very much appreciated by all winners.

Whilst giving out congrats it was well done to Lauren Boden for her 'A' qualifying time at the Sydney Track Classic last Saturday and also to Mel Breen and Kerrie Perkins on their strong performances

NATIONAL JUNIORS CHAMPIONSHIP

A large ACT junior squad has been selected for the Australian Junior Track & Field Championships to be held in Sydney March 14-18. The squad of 64 is extremely talented and we look forward to seeing many PBs achieved in Sydney.

A special thank you to Cathy Tanks, Kathy Southgate and Paul Torley as Team Selectors. They have really burnt the midnight oil in making the selections.  Also thank you to Cathy, Deon Norval and Michael Reading who will be the Team Managers in Sydney.

At the team's final briefing on Friday 24 February Richard Nicholson, a multi paralympic representative will be talking to the team about the AA program dedicated to preventing illicit drug use together with AACT Board member Chris Butler. 

BOARD OF MANAGEMENT

The Board of Management met in early February and a couple of important decisions include:

• Fees will be held constant for next year except that the subscription period will now run from 1 May to 30 April.

• The AACT Marathon Championship will be included in the marathon to be run as part of the Canberra Running Festival in April.

• AACT is working closely with the AWD Junior Talent Squad (JTS) to produce a funded program to support the development of a sustainable coaching structure partly using funding provided by Athletics Australia.  The ACT punches well above its weight in results achieved by our AWD athletes and the proposed structure should not only support talent and coaching development but also lessen the dependence on one or two key personnels.  Chris Timpson in particular has been an inspiration with his work in establishing the JTS.

CLUB STRUCTURE

As  previously mentioned the Management Committee has been looking at the appropriate club structure for Athletics ACT (AACT) in particular the role of each club in encouraging membership growth, communicating with members and obtaining volunteers and officials.  As part of this process the Executive has decided to increase Club affiliation fees significantly however clubs will be rebated based on their level of performance against key criteria areas. 

Justin Barrie has now presented a comprehensive report to the Management Committee and a full copy is now available on the AACT web site.

AACT is also due to review it's Strategic Plan over 2012 and the club review will be a key component.

Prior to making any decisions on the report the Committee has reaffirmed the importance of transparency around the review process particularly giving members an opportunity to comment on the report at both the individual and club level.

I am looking to meet with clubs and interested individuals over the report and a forum will be conveyed where Justin will provide a presentation on the Report and members are encouraged into provide input.  

Please contact me on 0414258745 or Alexander.gosman@BIGPOND.com if you would like to discuss the report.

Alex Gosman

AACT President

Wendy and Alex attended the Athletics Australia (AA) State and Territories Presidents and CEOs meetings in Melbourne on 28/29 November.  The AGM was also held on 29 November.

Much of the discussion at the CEOs meeting focused on building the capability of member clubs within each State/Territory as well as issues around school sport etc.  Given the review is now completed for AACT on our club structure it was interesting to hear the various perspectives of the States around their club structures which are generally struggling. 

A number of other States are also reviewing their club structures and there was general agreement around clubs being a certain size to be viable. It was noted that some clubs whilst historically strong may now be struggling with changing demographics.  There was also recognition that “no size fits all” and that what was an issue in one state may not be such an issue for others.  Having said that there was general agreement that clubs play a vital role in recruitment and retention.

At the AGM Anne Lord was elected to the AA Board – Anne was previously President of Athletics Victoria.

SCHOOL SPORT

AACT has been approached by ACT School Sports to take over the running of the various school athletic carnivals, building on our existing service of providing officials.  AACT will assist on a trial basis and is looking closely at undertaking such functions, with appropriate reimbursement recognising the synergies it would provide with existing expertise.  A number of states already undertake such functions for their respective school sport organisations.

SPORT AND RECREATION

Wendy and Alex recently met with representatives of ACT Sport and Recreation to discuss the first year of progress by AACT under our new triennial funding agreement with the major item of discussion being the Club Review.  It was an excellent meeting and the Department expressed its satisfaction with the activities undertaken by AACT and its improved governance.  It was also noted that we are due to review the AACT Strategic Plan next year.

COMBINED EVENT

As previously mentioned AACT will be holding a Combined event on the weekend of 18/19 February 2012 and further details are on the AACT website.  There are already strong indications of interest and thank you to Dianne Calvert and her committee for developing the idea and doing all the leg work.

CLUB REVIEW – REPORT AVAILABLE

As a recap and previously advised the Management Committee has been looking at the appropriate club structure for Athletics ACT in particular the role of each club in encouraging membership growth, communicating with members and obtaining volunteers and officials.  As part of this process the Executive has agreed to increase Club affiliation fees significantly but clubs to be rebated on the level of support provided by its officials and volunteers.

Rather than just continuing to talk about the club structure the Executive has committed to a thorough review including seeking members views.

As part of this process the Management Committee engaged Justin Barrie of Design Managers Australia to inquire into and report on the AACT club structure.  Justin has now presented a comprehensive report to the Management Committee and a brief précis is below and a full copy is available.

Prior to making any decisions on the report the Committee has reaffirmed the importance of transparency around the review process particularly giving members an opportunity to comment on the report at both the individual and club level.  AACT is also due to review its Strategic Plan in 2012 and the club review will be a key component.

The following process in considering the Review is proposed:

• December 2011 - Placing a copy of the report on the AACT website for members information and comment

• December 2011 - Writing to all Club Presidents and Secretaries seeking their views and also to hold an Association Executive Clubs meeting (early 2012)

• Early 2012 - A forum conducted where Justin will present on the Report for members input

• Jan-Feb – the Executive to consider the Report and feedback received and to make a decision on the approach going forward around Club structure and to meet again with Club Presidents to convey suggested approach

The models and insights contained in this report will be presented to and considered by the Board of AACT and will form part of the ongoing dialogue with Clubs about the future of the sport in the ACT and surrounding region.

Key aspects of the report

Current environment

• The target market for senior athletics in the ACT is extremely small. Due to the presence of Little Athletics and Veterans Athletics as separate bodies Athletics ACT is targeting an age group of 18 – 30; an extremely small potential market in a region of this size.

• A number of the clubs are sustainable but relatively inactive, in terms of their interaction with AACT and their position in the sporting market.

• The importance of training groups and subsequent allegiance with them rather than clubs is an emerging theme amongst athletes.

• The actual operational personnel involved in running a range of activities within the athletics community (clubs, competitions, additional services) is extremely small and places a large amount of pressure on those minimal resources.

Future State – looking to how it could be

• Some action must be taken to address declining participation numbers both in competition and in club operations because the status quo is unsustainable.

• The forced merger of Clubs is not a definitive answer to ensuring sustainability and in fact may lead to the reduction in numbers of volunteers as historic club ties evaporate.

• The emergence of Athletics ACT as a comprehensive service provider, rather than a continued reliance on the distributed resources of clubs, seems like the most affective way to ensure the ongoing viability of a club infrastructure.

• Consolidation (either formally or through relationships) of the various athletics bodies to present a clear peak voice to stakeholders and clear participation and volunteer pathways for athletes is critical for the long-term guarantee of participation number throughout age groups.

The Executive would express its appreciation to Justin for the quality and comprehensive nature of his report – no stone has been left unturned.

Alex Gosman, President AACT  0414258745

The ACT 2011/12 athletic season has kicked off and it should be an exciting season with the lead-in into the 2012 London Olympics and Paralympics (less than 10 months away) and with a number of our athletes in contention for the Australian teams to both these events.

The AACT Executive committee with the strong support of Gerard Ryan and his Competition Committee are introducing a number of initiatives to the summer season designed to increase interest.  Further details below.

NEW BOARD MEMBERS

Firstly however I am delighted to welcome the addition of a number of new members to the AACT executive plus the return of Andrea Ilakovic.

Chris  Butler will be well known in Canberra having had an athletic background as a junior and senior in Canberra and had spent several years with the IAAF in Monaco.  Chris is now working for the Australian Sports Commission in a sports partnership role and with his background in sports administration will be a great addition to the Executive. 

Jenny Price, the President of the Junior Talent Squad representing AWD has agreed to join the Executive to strengthen the relationship between the two organizations.  The ACT punches well above its weight in the levels of participation of AWD in our sport which is a testimonial to the efforts Chris Timpson as Coach and Jenny and her Committee.  AACT and the JTS are working together on developing a sustainable coaching structure for AWD using the Participation Funding from Athletics Australia.

Andrea, one of Canberra’s best distance runners has returned from her extended travels overseas and will rejoin the Committee.  It is great to have Andrea back on board and also congratulations to Andrea and Graham on their engagement.

The additions of Jenny, Chris and Andrea with existing Committee members Hannah, Laura and Neil, plus our hard working and extremely capable executive officer Wendy provides a much more sustainable governance structure.

DISTANCE EVENTS

The Runners Shop Distance Classic

AACT will  hold two “special” distance events offering prize money in regard to the 3000 metres on 4 November and the “Mile” on 12 January.  Under the heading The Runners Shop Distance Classic incorporating ‘The Runners Shop 3000m Track Classic’ and the ‘The Runners Shop 1 Mile Track Classic’

Prize money of $300, $150 and $50 will be up for grabs at the both events for the female and male races and The Runners Shop will be providing $50 gift vouchers for random draws.  The first Veteran in each event will also win $50.

Further details are on the AACT web site and already indications are of strong support for the events.

AACT is grateful to Nick and his team at the Runners Shop for their support and also to Weston Creek, Woden Harriers and North Canberra Gunghlin athletic clubs for their provision of financial support.

We hope to make these annual events with interstate competition.

The Committee is also working with a number of clubs, in particular NCGA re hosting a Combined event in late February.  It has been great to see the input from members around new events and we thank Dianne Calvert for her initiative in this respect.  Further details will be provided asap.

Working with our Development Adviser John Armstrong AACT is also looking at developing a “team” based competition structure that could be held over the latter parts of the season.  The idea is that small teams of say 7 participants across a variety of backgrounds (Veterans, LA, AWD etc) would compete for points across normal competition events.  Not intended to compete with the clubs the idea is to develop some additional “fun” components for the competition.

REVIEW OF CLUB STRUCTURE

As previously advised the Executive has engaged Justin Barrie to conduct a review into the existing club structure.  Justin has been speaking to many of the club Presidents, other sporting clubs and state athletic bodies.  A preliminary report was discussed at the Executive meeting on 4 October and Committee members were impressed with the work undertaken by Justin Barrie.  Justin has a few more interviews to complete and will be invited to the next meeting to present on completion.  There was also agreement that AACT should hold a general meeting open to all members for Justin to present when the report is completed.

Little Athletics and Athletics Australia

It was great to see the recent announcement between Little Athletics and AA on closer co-operation.  Within the ACT we very much appreciate the support provided by LAACT for our events (and also of course the support of the ACT Veterans) and the opportunity for close consultation on initiatives to support the growth of athletics. I enjoyed attending the recent Little Athletics “Excellence” dinner.

Please contact me with any questions on matters raised above

Cheers

Alex Gosman

President

Congratulations to all those deserved winners at the Awards night on Friday 27 May and in particular Lauren Boden for winning the Globe Award for Athlete of the Year and Brett Robinson for most Outstanding Junior Club Athlete.  Other highlights included the from the heart acceptance speeches of Louise Ellery (Outstanding Athlete with a Disability), June Ellery (Coach of an Athlete with a Disability) and Dennis Goodwin (Junior Coach of the Year).

We would also congratulate Mick Morris, Gerard Ryan, Greg Gilbert and Tom Stead who were awarded life membership at the AGM.  This award pays tribute to the sterling efforts of all four be it as athletes but particularly in respect of their contributions around running competitions, organising officials, compiling results and technical issues over many years.  And of course in Tom’s case for his sterling efforts on behalf of Cooma Athletics. Congrats to all four and they are an inspiration to all

With over 120 attendees it was the best attended awards night for many years and a big thank you to Wendy, Hannah and Neil for all their efforts around organizing the night and the awards.

We have much to be proud of within AACT at the performance of our athletes at the club, national and international level and we certainly punch above our weight.  This was highlighted last week by the selection of Angus Gould in the Australian Junior Commonwealth Games Team to compete in the long jump event later this year.

AGM

The AGM was also well attended and good feedback received from members on a number of issues.  It was however disappointing that a number of key positions on various committees remain unfilled and in particular at the officials, competition and at the executive level.  If interested please contact Wendy in the AACT office as the association cannot survive without support from its members.

This touches on the points I made in my President’s address that the past two years for Athletics ACT has represented a significant point of inflection as at the executive level the Board has focused on establishing a viable platform for supporting athletics in Canberra and the region.  Experience has shown that for any sport to be successful on the “field” at either the club or competition level it needs to be financially and administratively strong.  The fact that this was not the case for AACT some three years ago in terms of finances, competition structure, external relation ships and club structure was not the result of any sudden development but rather the result of a gradual process of not “keeping pace” with the external environment over the past 20 years.  And this was despite the commitment of many volunteers and members to athletics over this period.

Whilst the Association has been able to turn some of these issues around in focusing on the “fundamentals” the challenge going forward lies in further increasing the co-operation with our sister athletic associations, continuing to revamp and inject more excitement into the competition structure, increasing the number of volunteers, sorting out the club structure and providing a development structure.

John Armstrong who is undertaking development work for the Association spoke on his work to date which engendered a considerable number of questions.  At this stage John is just collecting ideas and we would now look to share his work with other associations to discuss areas of co-operation going forward.  In this respect it was great that Jeff Grey the recently elected President of ACT Veterans Athletics Club attended the AGM as did Tony Reilly, President of the ACT Little Athletics Association.  I would emphasise that any decisions going forward around issues such as competition structure, coach support will be made on the basis of agreement across all parties involved and after due consultation.  As has been highlighted previously AACT sees it as important to share the nature of this work and to work with all interested parties going forward on the basis of agreed outcomes (regular updates will continue on the web site).

There was some good discussion around the club structure with I think it fair to say a general consensus that the current structure is not working and a need to look at a more rationalized structure that supports athletics.  This has been an area of some frustration for the Board given the conflicting signals it has received on future directions.

Thank you again to all those who attended the AGM.

A forum will be held on 8 June where representatives from the clubs, coaches, officials and the AIS will discuss the competition structure for next year.  Noting some of the comments received in John’s development work on this subject AACT in the spirit of co-operating with our sister organization has also extended an invite to Little Athletics, Veterans and Canberra Runner Club to also attend the meeting and we welcome their input into the competition structure for the 2011-12 track and field season.

Alex Gosman

Good luck to all those athletes participating in the Australian Running Festival this weekend over a variety of distances – the conditions look like they will be ideal.  Congrats to the YMCA of Canberra Runners Club for getting the Festival up and running so quickly as well.

With the conclusion of the summer track and field system a big thank you to all participants but particularly the volunteers and officials who without their support the competitions would not be possible.  I particularly acknowledge Dave and Tracey Gould who were responsible for ensuring each meet had its quota of officials and volunteers which provided more than its fair share of challenges.  Thanks Dave and Tracey.

We will again be running a series of High Noon meets over winter and are very encouraged by the commitment of Tony Reilly and ACT Little Athletics to use the meets as a means of familiarising LA participants with senior competition.  This initiative by ACTLAA is another demonstration of the benefits of improved relationships within the ACT athletics community.

A reminder that the Athletics ACT AGM and Annual Awards will be held at the Hellenic Club on 27 May 2011 commencing at 6pm.  The Executive Board of AACT is looking for new Committee members and more details are available on the ACT website.  In addition to providing a review of the past year the Committee will be outlining proposals around ensuring much greater club support of the Association where the current situation does not seem to be working.

The Executive welcomes to the Committee Laura Garvican and looks forward to benefiting from her experience as a talented current athlete.  Laura will be taking over the Finance Director role while Andrea (Ilakovac) is holidaying and working overseas for the next 12 months.  We wish Andrea well on her travels and thank her for the sterling financial stewardship she had provided the Association.

I will be attending the Athletics Australia CEOs/Presidents meeting in Melbourne on 18 April and will provide feedback on the meeting

The ACT team performed sensationally at the recent Australian Junior Championships in Sydney with a large medal haul and many PBs.  The AACT Executive congratulates all participants and also thanks Michael Reading and Cathy Tanks for their excellent stewardship of the team and appreciates the efforts undertaken.  Also well done to Natalie Tanks, Lachlan Calvert and Erika Vredenbregt on their fantastic performances in Perth at the Athletics Australia National Combined Event Championships.

Congratulations also to the senior ACT athletic representatives who have been competing in the AA National Tour events and there were many strong performances last week in Perth in a very competitive environment.  Good luck to all those in action at the National Championships in Melbourne from 15-17 April.

Finally I am sure all AACT members join me in wishing NCGA club stalwart Bronwyn Parsons a speedy and full recovery from a recent illness and look forward to seeing her back at the track.

As previously advised the Board of Management has been working on a number of proposals designed to strengthen the position of athletics in the ACT (consistent with its Strategic Plan) and I am pleased to provide an update of some recent positive developments.

DEVELOPMENT PROPOSAL – COACHING MEETINGS

The Board of Management has agreed to a proposition from John Armstrong Sports Consultancy to provide assistance with development activities with a major initial focus on ensuring the appropriate coaching infrastructure is in place.  John has meet with Dennis Goodwin, President of the ACT T&FCA as well as a number of senior coaches.

Arising from these meetings John will be convening a workshop on 13 April with the broader representatives of the local coaching community to focus on the kind of competition structure that is best for emerging talent and priority areas of support for the ACT coaching community. We appreciate the strong leadership and engagement provided by Dennis and also recognize that these development activities are long term in nature but essential for the future growth of athletics.

The development activities will include an AWD component where funding has been secured from Athletics Australia.

Further details are available from John onarmstron@iinet.net.au

Funding for the proposed development activities will come from the increase in support from Sports of Recreation (of $8000 as previously mentioned), normal income and the AWD funding program.

Athletics ACT attended the BBQ hosted Tuesday February 1 by the ACT Minister for Sport, Andrew Barr announcing the 2011 Sport and Recreation Grant Program and the funding that individual sports would be receiving.  I am delighted to advise that Athletics ACT received a significant increase in its annual funding for the next triennial period to $22,000.  We believe that this increase reflects the detailed corporate plan the association has developed and the confidence that the Government has in the Association to continue to deliver against the key objectives.   The funding is also dependent on an improved club structure and increased cross-sport diversification.

As you would be aware from past articles we are disappointed with progress on development and it remains a key strategic priority  In this regard Neil and myself have been speaking to an ex-ASC staffer who we have asked to develop a development plan for athletics.  Our contact provides considerable experience and expertise in development activities across a range of sports. The funding increase provided by the Government will be focussed on the development area.

Athletics ACT expresses its gratitude to Minister Barr and Sport and Recreation Services for their support for athletics in the ACT and congratulates them on their positive response to our funding application.

Athletics ACT is also in discussion with ACTAS re its support for athletes for the next 12 months and hope to also be involved in discussions with Athletics Australia around the Canberra agreement.