Track cycling at the Dunc Gray Velodrome. Photo: Morgan Ho.
Close to 30 years ago, a proposal was put forward to build an indoor velodrome on the Lyneham sports footprint, which includes the netball, hockey and tennis centres.
My memory of it is vague and there is little in the way of archival evidence, but I remember reporting on it at the time.
With the outdoor Narrabundah Velodrome built in 1972 considered outdated and dangerous, the Lyneham option at one stage had momentum, but it disappeared into the ether.
Given most national and international track cycling events are staged indoors on timber, Canberra cyclists were at a disadvantage unless a solution was found.
Narrabundah Velodrome. Photo: Bundahdome Facebook page.
With the outdoor track at Narrabundah, the weather and wind have a significant impact. With the timber track, the speeds reached by cyclists are much quicker indoors than outdoors.
The construction of the Dunc Gray Velodrome in 1999 at Bass Hill in Sydney for the 2000 Olympics provided a solution to the dilemma faced not only by Canberra track cyclists but those from regional NSW.
Over the past 24 years, the Hume Highway has been a second home to generations of Canberra’s top track cyclists and their parents as they head back and forth to and from Bass Hill.
Morgan Ho is an assistant coach with the NSW Junior Track Development squad, which includes ACT cyclists.
He says: “Training on an indoor velodrome is crucial as it’s close to what is experienced at the nationals. Over the years we have seen a lot of young Canberra cyclists join our squad in the lead-up to major events as we use the timber track at Dunc Gray and they don’t have access to this type of facility in Canberra.”
There is now a real danger that this option will be taken away amid an impasse over the funding arrangement to manage the facility.
The NSW Office of Sport is set to hand back management of the velodrome to the Bankstown Council when the contract finishes on 31 March.
There are fears the council will baulk at the half a million dollars a year that it costs to maintain the facility, resulting in potential closure unless a solution can be found.
Given the uncertainty, the NSW Institute of Sport has announced the cessation of its track cycling program.
One Canberra parent, who preferred not to be identified for this story, said the loss of the track would impact riders in the regions as well as the ACT.
“There’s quite a difference between outdoor and indoor velodrome racing. Handling is a lot different. It would be an incredible disadvantage to not be able to train on a timber velodrome. If Sydney closes, the nearest is Melbourne. It would be cost-prohibitive to do it regularly. The impact would be pretty dramatic.”
Cyclists racing at the Narrabundah Velodrome as part of the 50th anniversary celebrations in 2022. Photo: Bundahdome Facebook page.
With a decision imminent, plenty of lobbying is happening behind the scenes. There is a petition, and approaches to government have stressed the importance of the facility eight years out from the Brisbane Olympics.
If a solution can’t be found, there are concerns that it will make it unviable for Canberra’s next generation of track cyclists to continue in the sport.
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