A message from the Chair of Athletics NSW

Good afternoon all,

I had hoped that my first message to the NSW athletics community as Chair would come in more positive circumstances, having just come off the back of the NSW Championships and looking forward with anticipation to the Australian Track and Field Championships in Sydney and the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Unfortunately, the year so far has presented us with a number of challenges which have required us to respond quickly and decisively to changing circumstances both in Australia and around the world.

A number of our events were impacted by the terrible bushfires Australia experienced during late 2019 and early 2020, before the outbreak of COVID-19 forced the cancellation or postponement of events around the world. Athletics, of course, is no different from other major sporting and cultural events which have been impacted by the virus.

Of course, I understand the frustration that many of our members and their families have experienced as a consequence of the cancellation or postponement of our events and those of Little Athletics NSW and Athletics Australia. It is a frustration which ANSW as an organisation and I as Chair also share - none of us want to be in a position where we are prevented from bringing our sport to you and celebrating the achievements of our athletes.

However, the reality of the present circumstances is that there is likely to be significant disruption to our sport and business for a number of months yet. ANSW and the sport more broadly is taking steps to put in place contingency plans to enable us to successfully navigate the difficult times ahead, while also ensuring that the sport is able to come back strongly once things return to normal. We will provide more communication regarding those plans in the days and weeks ahead. However where there is any doubt, the organisation will always prioritise the health and safety of the athletics community, as well as the broader community, and take an abundantly cautious approach.

I understand that it is a difficult time and that a significant part of each of our lives are focussed upon our sport. Sport has a wonderful way of providing us with purpose and joy, a platform for us to strive to achieve great things and an escape from the more mundane parts of life. It brings us together - whether it be our squads, our clubs or as a broader athletics community.

But we must always remember that to participate in our sport is a great privilege. Quite apart from anything else happening in the world at the moment, there are many people who are not afforded that privilege even in the best of times. During this period, I'd ask the members of our community to reflect on those going through much greater difficulty than we are experiencing due to some foregone events.

There will be another State Championship. There will be another Nationals. We will all get another opportunity to participate in the sport that we love. We remain enormously fortunate.

I encourage everyone to support and care for each other during what is a difficult time. I also ask that you be patient with us as we endeavour to do our best to see to the safety of our members, staff, officials, coaches and the rest of the athletics community.

It's fair to say that this is not the first month that I had anticipated navigating as Chair of our organisation. However, I am committed to working with our Board and staff to ensure that we come through this period and are able to enjoy getting back to the sport that we all love as soon as we can.

If we stick together, I'm supremely confident we can do it.

Yours in athletics,

Matt Whitbread

Chair