Oxford University has been chosen to host the New Zealand triathlon team for next summer’s Olympic games. The team will be based at the the Iffley Road sports complex during the run-up to the competition.
Competitors for the event have not yet been selected, but sources at the Iffley Road centre confirmed that around six or seven athletes, together with a support crew of eight or nine, will use the Rosenblatt swimming pool and the Roger Bannister athletics track, as well as nearby cycling routes. Jon Roycroft, Director of Sport for the University, welcomed the news, telling Cherwell, “Having these athletes here will be very exciting for everyone and we are delighted that the New Zealand triathlon team have chosen to use our sporting facilities.”
Helen Hanstock, President of the Oxford University Sports Federation, agreed. She said, “This is certainly an exciting opportunity for the University to showcase our current facilities – in particular the high quality Rosenblatt Pool and historic Iffley Road track.
“I hope that by successfully hosting a team of elite Olympic athletes that we may raise the profile of Oxford University as a successful sporting institution with constantly improving provision for sport.”
The University is currently fundraising for a £40m redevelopment of the sports facilities at Iffley Road, and both Hanstock and Roycroft hoped that the presence of an Olympic team would help their efforts towards this. Roycroft said, “We are proud that Iffley Road caters for student athletes, staff and Oxford residents, and we hope that the interest surrounding the Olympics will help our fundraising efforts as we seek to expand our provision of space for indoor sports and improve the grandstand at Iffley Road.”
Lydia Levy, a third year student at Pembroke and member of the women’s first boat, commented, “It’s very exciting that an Olympic team would consider the sports centre a worthy place to train. Obviously it’s not the first time that great people have trained there, but it’s always good to raise the profile of sport in Oxford.”
However, not all Oxford’s sportsmen were equally enthusiastic. Felix Neate, Captain of Coxes at Corpus Christi College, asked whether the New Zealand rugby team would be coming. When informed that they would not, he remarked, “Unless it’s a proper sport like rowing or rugby, I’m not interested.”
