$4.7 million gymnasium floor upgrade almost complete

Government has installed an ultra-modern glass sports floor at the Garfield Sobers Gymnasium, marking another step in its programme to modernise Barbados’ sporting infrastructure.

The new surface, which replaces the facility’s traditional wooden flooring, was unveiled to members of the media during a tour of the venue on Monday.

Minister of Sports and Community Empowerment Charles Griffith, Director of Sport at the National Sports Council Neil Murrell, and members of the German installation team from ASB Multisport guided the walkthrough, offering a first look at the state-of-the-art surface that officials say will improve durability and expand the facility’s capabilities.

Griffith explained that the decision to move away from wood followed years of maintenance and performance challenges with the previous flooring at the gymnasium. 

“I’m told by staff that this is the first in the Caribbean in terms of this type of floor. 

 We are now first world so to speak, with a fully glass floor. All of the sports, as you can see behind me, are being displayed by light, so there’s no more tape on the floor,” said Griffith, who is hopeful the new floor will allow for more revenue generation at the venue.

 

“This is coming at a cost of $4.7 million and I expect now that we should be able to do more things, as far as sports tourism is concerned. To have a facility like this, it means that cost recovery is in place.”

 

“One of the things that I’m hoping for is that we can now see tournaments being held here in basketball, volleyball and netball at a level that is expected from the international arena,” the minister said.

 

He said the new floor is part of government’s ongoing efforts to enhance the island’s sporting infrastructure, noting that close to $50 million has been spent on upgrading sporting facilities between the last financial year and now.

Work on the upgrade began in mid-January and is reportedly well ahead of schedule, with Minister Griffith expressing hope that the facility can be officially reopened with a major game or showcase. He added that, as the venue will continue to serve as a multi-use facility, measures will be implemented to protect the new floor.

 

“One of the things that we will be doing is purchasing a cover for the floor because a lot of activities are happening here outside of sports. It will protect the entire floor if there are Crop Over events or other activities that are happening.”

 

“We’re cognisant that this is primarily a sporting facility. Too often we’ve had situations where national federations were bumped, because of other events that are happening here that were not sporting events. I’m hoping that going forward, priority will be given to teams. I’m hoping that with $4.7 million being spent on this, we will now have a facility that will predominantly be used by the national federations who will be playing sports here,” he said.

 

Minister Griffith stressed the importance of providing sport infrastructure comparable to the first world to match the calibre of the island’s athletes.

 

“Whatever is done in terms of sports, we’re having comparable to first world infrastructure. If you’re going to have world class athletes, we need to have the facilities to match,” he added.

Work has also begun on the installation of four light towers for the new 400-metre synthetic athletics track at the gymnasium complex, with the project expected to be completed in the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, construction of the new netball multi-purpose stadium at Waterford is progressing steadily, while Minister Griffith reported that renovation work at the National Stadium is continuing well ahead of schedule.