Kanteerava track cries for attention

The synthetic track at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium has seen many a facelift since it was first laid in 1997. And it would seem the maintenance and patchwork can no longer hold it together as it has been damaged beyond repair.

“There are pits all over the track. It’s not that only one part has been affected. In some places, the surface has completely worn out, exposing the concrete below,” said a well respected senior coach about the state of the track.

“The long jump area is the worst-affected. The runway is practically concrete.”

“(It’s) very much (causing inconvenience),” added a fellow coach.

“As I know, in 1997 they laid the track for the National Games. The quality was ok. In 2006 they relaid it and the quality was bad. It went off in hardly 2-3 years. Since then they have been just doing patchwork.

“So now it has come to a condition where athletes are getting injured,” he added citing the stadium being host to multiple events as one of the reasons for the damages. The Department of Youth Empowerment and Sports (DYES) Commissioner K Srinivas said the re-laying of the track was one of their top priorities and the process has been set in motion.

“The tender has already been called. There are two interested parties. Right now the DYES is negotiating the amount. The order will be given soon. It will take two months to get the track ready, once the order is given,” he said adding that funds are not an obstacle here.