Isn’t it about time we got serious about looking after our history of sport in Canberra, asks TIM GAVEL?

AT the moment, our local history of sport is recognised at the ActewAGL ACT Sport Hall of Fame at Canberra Stadium, but if you are not a corporate ticket holder, you can’t wander in when the Brumbies or Raiders are playing. 

Sure, you can make your way out to Canberra Stadium when there isn’t a game, but it’s not highly advertised and it remains close to a secret. If you asked 100 Canberrans in the street where the ACT Sport Hall of Fame was located, I reckon 99 wouldn’t have the faintest idea.

Names of people who have contributed to Canberra, not only through sport but also through other avenues of the ACT’s social history, need more exposure and recognition.

A “sporting walk of fame” was started in Civic many years ago, but I have lost track of where that is up to. There was also talk of a sport-based wall displaying the names of those who have made a significant contribution to Canberra. Alas, that appears to have disappeared, too.

Last week, the Canberra Amateur Swim Club handed back a trophy donated by the Canadian High Commission in 1949 in a bid to keep the iconic beaver trophy in a secure place. If it wasn’t given back to the High Commission, where it has some significance, it would have been locked in a cupboard because there was no room to display it at the Canberra Museum and Art Gallery.

If we had a museum dedicated to sport, these items would fit beautifully and add to the depth and breadth of our understanding of the ACT’s history of sport. Where to locate such a facility is the next question.

The Lyneham sporting precinct was one idea floated years ago, along with a permanent home for the ACT Academy of Sport, which has had a number of homes in its gypsy-style existence. Its gym is located at the Lyneham precinct, why not build a permanent facility next door to cater for Canberra’s young up-and-coming athletes and house the ACT Sport Hall of Fame and iconic sporting memorabilia before it is lost forever?

Canberra has a proud and interesting history of sport, ranging back to the start of the Canberra Yacht Club on Lake George, to the victory by the ACT Australian Rules team over the might of the AFL, to the numerous Olympic gold medallists and world champions who have come from this region.

Then there are the premierships won by the Raiders, the Brumbies, the Cannons and the Capitals.

Our history of sport is something we should be proud of and should be on display, not consigned to cupboards and back rooms where nobody sees it. Let’s at least start talking about it happening.