Petition launched to save athletics track where Sheffield Olympian Jess Ennis started out
A petition has been launched in a bid to save the athletics track where Sheffield Olympian Jess Ennis started out, after it lost the right to hold championships there.
City Athletics Stadium, on Woodbourn Road - the same track where Sheffield world champion Jessica Ennis-Hill cut her teeth as a teenager - has lost its licence from UK Athletics to host competitive events.
It means the stadium, formerly known as Woodbourn Stadium, can no longer host licensed competitions where the UK’s future gold medallists make their mark.
Sheffield Hallam University says it cannot afford the £1.5m investment to meet the standards to host events.
But a delve into The Star’s archives show athletes and parents have been warning the university for years about the track’s deterioration.
The track underwent a £325,000 revamp in 2013 when it was taken over by the university, as a replacement for Don Valley Stadium, which was demolished that year.
However, past Star articles show athletes had concerns for years that the refurbishment was not fit for purpose, and tensions between parents and the university did not take long to emerge.
Years of tension between young athletes and Sheffield Hallam University
One Monday evening in January 2014, families arrived to find the track in darkness, after SHU ruled that not enough people used it on Mondays and had not switched on the floodlights.
One mum, Laverne Newton, said at the time: “Sheffield has a lot of talented, dedicated young athletes but my fear is that the city is not going to produce another Jess Ennis-Hill unless changes are made to the track.”
And, in a fascinating moment of history repeating itself, The Star ran an almost identical story four years later.
One evening in December 2018, families had to light the track themselves using their car headlights so children could train - again, after the university decided to shut the stadium and not switch on the floodlights on Monday and Friday evenings during the winter.
On that occasion, one dad, Iain Smith, said at the time: “Where is our next Jessica Ennis-Hill going to come from if we cannot provide quality training facilities with open access?”
Ms Newton’s and Mr Smith’s words are likely now echoed by many parents today, 12 years later.
More issues arose in 2018.
Rob Creasey, former head coach at Don Valley Stadium, which he campaigned vociferously to save, called the stadium a “shambles” in an article in May that year.
A wobbly stopping board on the shot circle, overgrown anchor points on the throwing cage, and flooded toilets in the women's changing rooms were among faults he highlighted.
He said: “Don Valley Stadium was a world class venue and a huge asset to the city. What we have in its place today, despite all the promises five years ago about what it would become, is a facility that's not fit for purpose.”
Then, in 2022, young athletes told The Star they were travelling to Leeds to train and compete because the City Athletics Stadium was not up to scratch.
At a meeting over the future of the track on February 17, 2022, young athletes told chiefs about blocked toilets, an indoor track they couldn’t use, a lack of adequate fencing around the outdoor track, and restrictions on when they could train.
Promising athletes shared how they were forced to pay private clubs and even travel to Leeds Beckett to use facilities.
Former MP for Sheffield Central Richard Caborn, who was also a former sports minister, told the meeting: “We can’t look at this as just an athletics issue, we have to look at the stadium as a wider economic model.”
Meanwhile, chair David Slater, owner of workspaces company Spaces, said: “Sheffield athletics has gone south ever since Jessica crossed the finish line in 2012.”
At the time, the university hinted at “significant investment” in the track’s pavilion over 2022.
It would appear this never materialised, but the stadium as it was gained the ‘TrackMark’ accreditation prior to the meeting in 2022 - a licence it has now allowed to expire.
It represents nearly over a decade of tension between athletes and SHU, who despite the revamp in 2013 have now been accused of allowing the stadium to fall into disrepair and scuppering chances for future sports stars.
Other competitions are now expected to be relocated to Herringthorpe Stadium in Rotherham, the Dorothy Hyman track in Barnsley, or Derby.
A petition calling on SHU and the council invest in the track was launched by Greg Rimmer, a member of Sheffield and Dearne Athletics Club and a volunteer field judge for England Athletics. It asks the university and council to urgently invest in the necessary upgrades, and has gained over 1,300 signatures.
It reads: “Sheffield, known for its remarkable lineage of world-class athletes and Olympians, is currently facing a crisis that threatens to undermine its long-standing athletic tradition.
“For years, the Athletics Stadium at Woodbourn Road has been a cornerstone of our community - a place where athletes of all ages and levels of expertise come to train, compete, and realise their potential. However, recent developments have put the future of this invaluable institution at risk.”
What has the university said?
Sheffield Hallam University says it is unable to afford the £1.5m in upgrades needed to get the track back to a competitive level.
A spokesperson said: “We appreciate how disappointing this news will be for the athletics community, and we are contacting affected users to offer support, discuss alternative arrangements where needed, and help minimise the disruption as far as possible.
“An independent inspection process has highlighted that the facility requires more than £1.5m of investment to meet the standards required for reaccreditation, and the University is not in a financial position to commit to this level of investment.
“We are working closely with Sheffield City Council to identify a sustainable, long‑term solution.
“In the meantime, the stadium remains open and available for recreational athletics and for events that do not require UKA accreditation, and we will continue to support users wishing to operate on this basis.”
It comes after a turbulent few years for the university.
SHU leaders told all staff members on an online call in May 2025 they intended to find £28m in cuts for 2025-26 through voluntary redundancies, which itself came after 450 people left in 2024.
However, unions claim the city campus uni is “planning cuts totalling £70m over the next four years” including a 30 per cent reduction in staff costs - all while considering building a London campus at a cost of £10m.