Marion Council to discuss damage to new $6m Sam Willoughby BMX track behind closed doors

Marion councillors will go behind closed doors to discuss damage to the new $6m Sam Willoughby BMX track as questions remain about the timing of its official opening.

Extensive damage caused to a brand new BMX track in Adelaide’s southern suburbs has become cloaked in secrecy.

Marion Council will receive a confidential briefing on Tuesday night about repairs needed at the $6m Sam Willoughby International BMX Facility at O’Halloran Hill.

The meeting’s agenda says the briefing needs to be held behind closed doors “given the information relates to commercial and contract information of a confidential nature”. Tracks at the complex were badly damaged late last month when heavy rain fell during a national competition.

The event began immediately after the new BMX park was officially opened by Premier Steven Marshall and Willoughby, an Adelaide-born Olympic silver medallist BMX rider who became a tetraplegic following an accident in 2016.

Marion Council voted to spend $60,000 on the opening following a request by a national cycling organisation, Auscycling, to hold the first two rounds of a national BMX competition at the facility.

Former Australian BMX champ and tetraplegic Sam Willoughby with wife Alise, back in Adelaide for the opening of the BMX track named in his honour. Picture Simon Cross

While the tracks were regarded as “event ready”, final surface work had not been completed by contractors. In a social media post last month, the company which built the complex, Partek, said it was handed over to the council “one week ahead of schedule in readiness” for the national competition. “It was a great team effort to get this project over the line under difficult circumstances,” it said.

The social media post by Partek Construction about the Sam Willoughby International BMX facility. Picture: Instagram

Marion Council chief executive Tony Harrison said the council had asked for an independent assessment.

“That advice is expected to come through sometime this week,” he said. “Financial and commercial in confidence matters will at this stage be considered in confidence.”

Asked if any consideration was given to postponing the opening and national titles until work was complete, Mr Harrison said the council “got the all-clear for the track being used for competition prior to the event from an UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) accreditor and the contractor”.

“The BMX Nationals were run by AusCycling,” he said. “They decided it was safe to start racing on Saturday, January 22, and they made the call to stop racing early at 5pm. They also made the call to race on Sunday, January 23.”