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Ice sports in Australia have taken a huge blow with the announced closure of the Ice Arena in Bendigo, Victoria.  This leaves only one arena at Oakleigh to cater for all the Ice Hockey, Figure Skaters, Speed Skaters and Curlers of all levels in the State of Victoria.  Demand will surely be much greater than the possible ice time that Oakleigh can provide.  Some, or all, of these sports will suffer in some way to a reduction in facilities.

Hopefully one of two options for a new facility will be accelerated with this announcement.

1) That a proposed new Ice Facility in Bendigo with Olympic sized Hockey arena and 2 dedicated sheets of ice for curling will be approved.  I believe the blueprints and business plan for this facility exist - it is just a matter of approving the facility by the local Bendigo Council, and figuring out how to finance the project.

2) That the redevelopment of the Melbourne Docklands will include an ice sports facility.  The Docklands has had an arena on and off the plans over the years.  The Olympic Winter Institute of Australia has been pushing for a centre at the location for many years - but the facility seems to be a political poker chip by politicians and the prospect and future of the facility changes status with Government changes.  A good YouTube video that summarises the state of Ice Sports in Australia, and the possibilities of the Docklands can be viewed by clicking on the graphic below. 

We will see how this pans out - but for me is considered a serious step backwards in our efforts to grow the popularity of Curling in Australia.

<Ian Palangio>