But infrastructure not in step

Dev Nadkarni

The spanking new water sports complex... sporting infrastructure on track. (Pic: Dev Nadkarni)

Sporting infrastructure for next year’s thirteenth South Pacific Games (SPG) seems to be on track with some projects likely to be completed ahead of schedule.

The spanking new water sports complex completed well before its scheduled date is impressive with its Olympic-standard swimming pools and facilities. It also has a deep diving pool, though that does not form part of any event at the SPG.

The neighbouring sprawling indoor facility is also complete already having hosted one weightlifting championship and the Miss Samoa pageant as the finale of the Teuila Festival in September. The venue for the track and field events—Apia Park—is being given a makeover at breakneck speed with dozens of Chinese workers engaged in putting up new structures.

The Games’ marketing and sponsorship initiative is now expected to gain traction with the launch of Mana, the Games mascot, which is based on the country’s parrot-like Manumea bird.

Coordination of sponsorships has been awarded to an Australian company that is also managing television rights.

“This is the first time we are looking at real time, region-wide telecasts simultaneously in two languages—English and French,” says SPG chief executive officer Fonoti Manogiamanu Ioane. He expects the move to bring in more regional advertisers to the telecasts.

The Olympic-standard indoor pool (Pic: Dev Nadkarni)

As of now, sponsorship from Samoan companies outstrips that from regional players. ANZ Bank is the lead sponsor having committed ST1.5 million. SamoaTel has put up ST850,000.

Regional sponsors have been slow in coming, says Fonoti. But he is confident the Australian firm will net enough sponsors on the basis of a region-wide real time television coverage.

Sponsors

But as of now, not too many of the major regional brands figure as sponsors.

By the start of the Games, the Samoan government would have run up bills to the tune of nearly ST75 million. Close to ST55 million in design fees, material and personnel costs has sbeen committed by the People’s Republic of China taking up the total Games budget to nearly ST150 million. China has almost exclusively contributed to the sporting infrastructure.

Fonoti was unable to confirm whether participating states have already contributed their bit in terms of participation fees.

While sporting infrastructure and facilities may be on track, the situation with hosting, transportation, roading and traffic management around the Games venues seems to be fluid. A narrow single lane bridge on one of the main access roads from downtown Apia to the water sports and indoor gymnasium complex presents a severe bottleneck as was seen during the Miss Samoa pageant. There is talk of plans to widen the bridge but no one that Islands Business spoke with was sure when or if that was to happen. Internal roads in the Games complex are also yet to be laid.

Hectic building activity at Apia Park. (Pic: Dev Nadkarni)

Unlike in previous Games, Fonoti says each participating country-team will have a dedicated transport facility complete with the country’s insignia and team’s colours.

SPG is in talks to persuade the country’s bus operators to depute their buses for the Games.

If the operators accept the proposal, more than half of the country’s bus population of 230 will be pressed into service for the Games.

What is not clear is how the travelling public will cope with just half the normal bus fleet during the two weeks that the Games will be held. Importing new buses is an option but a costly one and is being looked at as the very last resort, says Fonoti.

In the absence of a Games Village, athletes will be accommodated in schools around Apia and many of these are being readied for refurbishment.

Some of the schools are likely to require major upgrades in terms of toilet and dining facilities.

The bill for refurbishment is likely to be picked up by a World Bank scheme. “Most schools are a short walking distance to the sports facilities,” says Fonoti.

A major hosting venue would be the National University of Samoa and Samoa Polytechnic complexes.

The organisers are still in the process of ordering beds and other hosting infrastructure. Fonoti is confident the venues will be ready well before time. However, the country is yet to put in place a viable strategy to maintain all the sports infrastructure after the conclusion of the Games.

The organisers are planning increased cultural exchanges and looking to establish a “Pacific Cultural Centre” ahead of the Games.

This is the last time the Games will be called the “South Pacific Games”—next time around they will go by the more inclusive “Pacific Games” moniker.

This is also the last time that 33 games and sports will be featured. In subsequent games, that number will come down to 28. Samoa’s SPG committee and Fonoti’s team are determined to make the Games most memorable.

• Regular updates about the Games can be accessed at www.samoa2007.ws