Kamloops SHORTLISTED to host the 2010 World Masters Athletics Championships

March 4, 2008
City of Kamloops Press Release

Kamloops, B.C.—Later this month, Mayor Terry Lake and Kamloops Track and Field president Judy Armstrong will lead a delegation to Clermont-Ferrand, France, to secure the bid for Kamloops to host the 2010 World Masters Athletics Championships.

“This is an event of huge international significance, and it will place Kamloops on the world stage of track and field athletics right after the 2010 Olympics end in Whistler,” says Lake.

 Women and men of not less than thirty-five years of age will compete in a full range of indoor track and field events at Tournament Capital Centre, in March 2010.  There will also be a half-marathon on Tranquille Road beyond the airport, an eight kilometre cross-country run at McArthur Island, and a 10 kilometre race-walk on Schubert Drive.

Bob Cowden, retired school principal, promoter of the Tournament Capital facilities, and volunteer leader in many sporting organizations in the Kamloops region, will chair the championships.  He will be backed up by event manager Judy Armstrong and director Al McLeod, past-president of the Kamloops Track and Field Club. 

The six-day event will draw 2,000 adult athletes, plus coaches, medical staff, officials, families, and friends.  Tourism Kamloops will play a major role in finding accommodation for people attending the event.

“Having more than 2,000 visitors converge on the Tournament Capital of Canada, means that hotels, restaurants, entertainment and recreational venues will benefit from an estimated $1.5 million in spending,” says Lake.   

“Importantly, Kamloops will have another legacy to inspire young and old to stay fit and active,” adds Lake.  ”Tournament Capital Centre and the local track and field club will also have a legacy of equipment for athletes of all age levels, including elementary and high school students in the future.

Kamloops Track and Field Club has been the driving force behind the bid since the organization hosted the North-Central America-Caribbean World Masters in 2000.  The 2000 event was chaired by Brian Keaveney, President of Canadian Masters Athletics Association, based in Toronto.

 Keaveney, plus World Masters Athletics Vice President Rex Harvey, based in Ohio, and an official from Brisbane, Australia returned to Kamloops in October 2007.  When they toured the city and the new Tournament Capital Centre, they were very impressed with everything they saw.  They believed at that time that Kamloops was in a position to host the 2010 World Masters Athletics Championships.