Purpose

The objective of this fundraiser is to assist the Sunraysia Athletics Club (SAC) to be able to meet its share of the cost of building a synthetic athletic track in Mildura.

Sunraysia Athletics Club

SAC is an incorporated association not-for-profit community group founded in 1970 and operating continuously ever since. SAC was affiliated with Victorian Little Athletics Association until 2008 when this was changed to Little Athletics SA. Another change occurred in 2025 when the constitution was changed to enable adult membership and became affiliated with Athletics SA. Until that time the club was known as Mildura and District Little Athletics Centre. The club has a strong desire for continuous improvement. There is currently a full committee, however many other volunteers are required to make it work. Of special interest, this year SAC has five athletes reaching National level in competitions.

Ownership

The Mildura athletics track and field facilities are owned and maintained by Mildura Rural City Council (Council) having been constructed in 1989 at the current location as part of the Old Aerodrome Ovals Sporting Complex. Council maintains the lawns, fixtures and irrigation system throughout the year. Existing high-quality amenities are alongside the track - including toilets, a modern kitchen/kiosk, equipment storage, and a large well-equipped hall. There are bitumen carparks on two sides of the track.

Current track

The 400m track consists of eight lanes based on irrigated perennial grass (kikuyu). The grass is a perennial, thriving in hot summers with adequate water. However, when frost hits in winter the surface grass cover dies and disintegrates with use. Track lines don't take well on bare soil.

SAC maintains the white lines from late September to mid-March each year at a cost of almost $500 per week, while Council does same for the school season in winter-early spring.

Climate

Mildura has a hot, dry climate, being in the semi-arid region of inland Australia. The average annual rainfall is 285mm.

Location

Mildura is relatively remote, being 550km from Melbourne, 1,000km from Sydney, and 400km from Adelaide. The nearest synthetic tracks are in Adelaide and Bendigo (also 400km from Mildura). Mildura is on the Victorian side of the Murray River, but NSW is close by. The closest town in SA is Renmark, which is 145km west.

Shortcomings

The irrigation system uses pop-up sprinklers supplied with recycled water. Due to its 37-year age, the pattern is now uneven, resulting in a highly variable cover. There are bare patches which suffer wind erosion, creating unsafe sections mainly on lane 1. Inconsistency of the running surface is a challenge for athletes, particularly for hurdles and sprints. Another disadvantage is the shape of the track - it is long and narrow, so the sharpness of the curves is at the absolute limit for adult athletes, thus the track is not suited to high-level adult competition.

Progress to date

For 20 years, SAC has been working with Council to improve the track, in particular the field event facilities such as long and triple jumps and high jump. Most recently, SAC upgraded the timing/starting equipment to a totally wireless system, assisted by a Council grant. Earlier, we contributed half the cost of a new storeroom provided by Council to safely store our equipment on-site. The equipment is valued at more than $100,000.

In 2021, SAC undertook a feasibility study and business case for the construction of a synthetic track, using a specialist consultant. The cost estimate provided in the report was $2.5 million. In 2023 Council commissioned a consultant to prepare detailed plans and specifications for a synthetic track on the current site. The design included sub-surface drainage, lighting, security fencing, a water-jump, and two pole vaults, none of which are currently on-site. The cost estimate in June 2024 was almost $6 million. That figure included a 25% contingency and a 5% rural loading. This figure has been questioned by a local contractor and a Melbourne-based consultant/athletics coach.

Mildura Council will be the construction body and owner of a synthetic track. Council will in the future apply for State funding, but in the meantime has advised SAC to start fund-raising to meet its share of the local contribution of $.

Existing users

Users of the current Mildura track each year include:

1. Sunraysia Athletics Club - 18 competition mornings between October and mid-March, plus one evening each week for training (200 athletes, approximately 65% resident in Victoria and 35% in NSW), also two come-and-try sessions in September.
2. Sunraysia Academy of Sport - for elite athletes training twice per week with visiting coaches (10 athletes)
3. Local Victorian schools - currently 15 schools and three interschool athletics carnivals (each one day) are held during winter (travelling from far away as Murrayville, Ouyen, and Werrimull)
4. Local NSW schools - currently 3 local schools, one primary interschool, and one primary zone carnival (each one day) are held during winter each year 9travelling from as far as Broken Hill)
5. Christie Centre - for all abilities young adults for training - weekly (20 young adults)
6. Riverland Regional Games - every three years for young athletes from Waikerie, Barmera, Loxton, and Mildura (three visiting club - up to 30 families from SA)
7. Tri-State Games - for disabled athletes from SA, Vic and NSW, Mildura has hosted this event twice in the past (to be held again in 2026, 300 athletes attending from SA, Vic and NSW)

Conclusion

SAC looks forward to receiving donations towards this worthy cause that will be used by thousands from remote communities in inland Australia.