After 47 years, Melton’s Little Athletics finally has somewhere to call home.
A long-awaited purpose-built facility at Atherstone will open early next year for the 160 children involved with Melton City Little Athletics, formerly known as Melton South Little Athletics.
Committee secretary Aimee Orr says they are looking forward to a state-of-the-art centre after nearly five decades of training and competing at the Melton South Recreation Reserve.
“Our kids certainly have always been at a disadvantage, but thanks to council, Melton is going to be leading the way facility-wise,” Ms Orr said. “They’ve given us a world-class facility that will allow our kids, if they choose, to be Olympians.
“It’s an all-weather synthetic facility, so rain, hail or shine we’ll be able to compete now.”
Ms Orr said the children’s chances to perform at their best had been hindered by a lack of resources, which some people took for granted. “We didn’t have a pole vault, but we do now. This is all a big deal for us – it’s something we’ve not had the opportunity to use in the past,” Ms Orr said.
Melton City Little Athletics is hoping the new centre will be a drawcard for young people and families from all over the municipality. Its goal is to increase its numbers to about 200 young athletes next season.
For more information about Melton City Little Athletics, call 0400 334 934.
