He demonstrated the damaged crossbar, patched together with tape, in front of our camera Józef Ferensowicz, a retired physical education teacher and referee. Both the parents of those competing and the participants themselves laugh at the condition of some of the sports equipment at the stadium. This situation has been ongoing for a year. The problem, Mr Józef assures us, has been reported many times. To no avail. “It’s frightening to compete,” the referee concludes.

“We use the equipment belonging to MOSiR and MKS Bolesłavia,” he points out Edward Spraski, the director of the Inter-School Sports Centre and co-organizer of numerous competitions. “We do not have the funds to purchase new equipment,” he adds. All the more so because sports equipment is not cheap. According to the director, the equipment at the stadium is not of the best quality, but it does not pose a threat to the athletes’ health.

Bartosz Gruman disagrees Bartosz Gruman from MKS Bolesłavia: “The long-jump takeoff board is dangerous.” But that is not the biggest concern of the event organizers. According to Bolesłavia’s coach, the long-jump runway at the stadium is also dangerous. The same applies to the track. “It is uneven. If anyone came and inspected it, the result would be that competitions would no longer be held in Bolesławiec,” Gruman emphasizes. What is more, when it rains, a huge puddle appears at the finish line. In the coach’s opinion, it is embarrassing to organize larger sporting events here.

Bolesłavia is also affected by a lack of equipment. “To organize county- or municipality-level competitions, hurdles are collected from all over Bolesławiec,” he says Bartosz Gruman. Some of the necessary equipment is borrowed from Szkoła Podstawowa nr 1, and some from the commercial school. “Or someone says: maybe we shouldn’t hold this event, because it’s simply more convenient that way,” he adds.

Will anything change?

As we have established, Dariusz Jośko, director of MOSiR, has asked the city authorities for money to purchase new hurdles (over PLN 7,000). City councillors are to decide whether the centre will receive this amount at the June session of the City Council. The problem is that purchasing new hurdles will be merely a drop in the ocean of needs.

(GA information)