‘Legacies’ stay with sports codes

Equipment purchased for the 2009 Pacific Mini Games will remain with relevant sports codes and organisations, Cook Islands Sports and National Olympic Committee (CISNOC) president Sir Geoffrey Henry says.

He addressed the issue at the committee’s annual general meeting held at Takuvaine last week.

Henry told CISNOC members and affiliates that the legacies left over from the mini games would not be on-sold.

“It’s unfortunate that our minister of sport (Mark Brown) is unable to be with us tonight, who has some very clear ideas about the legacy issues. We’ve had the opportunity to meet with him and to put before him matters of great concern amongst the membership of CISNOC and we’ve had some very clear indication from him about where his views are.

“He has some very firm views that what was bought is not to be sold on. That if it was bought for the mini games, the codes that received that equipment, whatever the equipment is, will retain it because that’s the concept of legacies,” Henry told those at the AGM.

Some members, representing national sport federations, had expressed concern about what would happen with equipment referred to as legacies.

Nearly $10 million was spent on new sporting facilities and equipment for the games.

About $1.5 million was spent on equipment for sports centres and national federations, as well as the games organising committee. Legacies from the 2009 games include the Telecom Sports Arena, new tennis courts, and the synthetic running track within a fully-renovated Tereora National Stadium which became the BCI Stadium.

Legacies were tipped as a main benefit of hosting the event, which comprised about 2500 athletes from 22 countries competing in 15 sporting codes.