Jessica Ennis-Hill's Olympic gold coach and local running groups speak out over Woodbourn Road track
The athletics track on Woodbourn Road has been closed since April 6 after it deemed to be unsuitable for competitive athletics
Toni Minichiello, who coached Jessica Ennis-Hill to numerous wins, including a gold medal in the 2012 London Olympics, has spoken out over a plan for running clubs to take control of the City of Sheffield Athletics Stadium after it was suddenly closed.
Representatives from a number of Sheffield running clubs have teamed up to try and take control of stadium and track.
The track at Woodbourn Road in Attercliffe was closed by Sheffield Hallam University, which operates the site, on April 6, leaving many athletes having to cancel their weekly meet-ups or travel outside of the city to continue training.
Sheffield Hallam closed the track because they deemed it to be unsuitable for competitive athletics due to the track’s problems with shock absorption.
Shock absorption directly affects how much force travels back into an athlete's body during high-impact activities like running, jumping and falling. Without good shock absorption athletes become much more prone to injuries such as joint strain and stress fractures.
The university says it cannot afford the £1.5m investment needed to fund the repairs, leading to great frustration from parents and coaches.
Toni Minichiello, who coached Jessica Ennis-Hill to numerous wins, including a gold medal in the 2012 London Olympics, says while talks are still only in the early stages it’s good to see athletic clubs working together.
“What’s incredibly positive is that everyone has come together to try and find a solution. It’s important for parents and coaches for there to be a long-term strategy in place,” he said.
Minicheillo describes Woodbourn as being much more than simply an athletics track, adding that it should be seen as an important community asset to both Sheffield and the surrounding areas.
“I think there are plenty of business people that would want to come forward and support it. What’s important to understand though is it’s much more than just an athletics centre, it's critical to improving Sheffield as a city.
“It's a facility for everyone regardless of ability to use to get fitter and it's also so important to understand its importance in supporting people’s physical health, mental health and also education. As a city we should always be looking to prioritise those issues.”
The group aiming to take control of Woodbourn includes representatives from City of Sheffield and Dearn Athletics Club, Hallamshire Harriers and Sheffield Striders among others.
One of those, Tom Grantham, chair of Sheffield Athletics Club told The Star earlier this month: “The university will say they've got no money and the council will say they've got no money.
“They're not just letting me or the clubs down, but the education system in Sheffield as a whole. We've got the Olympic legacy! Every year since 2012 Sheffield has had an athlete at the Olympics.
“The word neglect is best. It's such a shame. Athletics had already lost momentum during Covid. I want to see the community go all in on it, to raise the money and look after it ourselves.”
They group submitted the proposal on Monday, April 27 and are currently awaiting a response.
Sheffield City Council said of the proposal that it was at a "very early stage, with more detail required to assess whether this could represent a viable option".