Complexe Sportif Claude Robillard, the venue slated to host next week’s Bell Canadian Track and Field Olympic Trials in Montreal, is in poor condition. During a site visit on Thursday morning, Athletics Canada officials noticed parts of the track had melted and started bubbling due to the current heat wave affecting many parts of central Canada. With the Olympic trials just five days away, urgent repairs are needed, which could take days.
This is the current state of the Complexe Sportif Claude Robillard track in Montreal.
The venue is hosting Canadian Olympic Trials next Weds (26th).
The 30 C+ degree heat opened up potholes in the 100m area. @AthleticsCanada had to move Friday’s @MtlClassique to a new spot. pic.twitter.com/PIZJILg4Hl
— Marley Dickinson (@marleydickinson) June 21, 2024
On Thursday evening, Athletics Canada issued an emergency statement to all athletes competing in Friday’s La Classique d’athlétisme de Montréal, (which was also supposed to be held at Complexe Sportif Claude Robillard): “Due to unforeseen circumstances, tomorrow’s scheduled La Classique d’athlétisme de Montréal competition will no longer be held at Complexe Sportif Claude Robillard. The event will now be held at the Ben Leduc Athletics Track, conveniently located just a 25-minute drive from Complexe Sportif Claude Robillard.”
The track at Complexe Sportif Claude Robillard had renovations earlier this spring to host the 2024 Bell Canadian Olympic Trials between June 26-30. According to Athletics Canada, the track could not handle the heat and humidity in Montreal this week, causing it to rip and bubble along the homestretch. With no sign of the weather cooling down during next week’s competition, Athletics Canada hopes to have the venue ready for June 26. However, there is still a possibility that the patches might reopen under the strain of thousands of Olympic hopefuls wearing track spikes and the heat.
“We will do whatever it takes to make this event happen at Claude Robillard,” says Chris Winter, the director of domestic programs with Athletics Canada. “We already have people on the ground, and we’ve called in a team from Ontario to begin patching up the track on Friday to get the venue ready for the Olympic Trials on the 26th.”
The patches, described to Canadian Running by athletes and officials as “little potholes” or “meteorites,” are reportedly aligned along the homestretch. Athletics Canada has already considered a Plan B, which involves changing the start and finish lines of some sprinting events to the backstretch, as most of the damage is on one side of the track.
This unexpected issue adds an element of uncertainty to the trials, but Athletics Canada says they are committed to ensuring a successful event at Complexe Sportif Claude Robillard, which previously hosted the championship event in 2019 and 2021.
