Celebrating 150 years of South Canterbury Amateur Athletics Club

August 12, 2021
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New Zealand’s oldest club marks its 150th anniversary this year. To commemorate the special moment, we take a look back at the proud history and heritage of South Canterbury Amateur Athletics Club.

Humble Beginnings

South Canterbury AAC was formed in 1871 when a group of young men decided to constitute a club to amuse themselves with feats of strength and activity and provide good fellowship. They held their first meeting on farmland in Pareora, just south of Timaru, where competitors ran in hobnail boots.

Following Pareora, the next meeting was held the following year at Saltwater Creek on a track behind the pub where horse racing was also part of the entertainment.

Why Timaru formed the very first club in New Zealand, club Senior Vice President Mike Bunckenburg said: “Timaru was not quite the backwater it is today. Back then (in the mid-to-late 19th century) it had a comparatively large population and produced a huge amount of cereal.

“It was the publicans that organised gala days for the athletics. There was quite a list of events including the standing long jump and a mile track walk. Another popular event was throwing the stone – which weighed around 20lbs.

“We know that participants competed for a challenge cup in which points were awarded to decide the winner across a number of events. Some of the cups they competed for were made out of silver and often if an athlete won for two consecutive years, they’d get to keep the cup.”

Home from Home

In 1878 the club purchased two acres west of Timaru, possibly the current Fraser Park, where in 1883 it is believed a cinder track was laid. Financial circumstances meant the club had to lease the land but by 1908 was unable to meet the payments and went into recess.

Amateur athletics was revived in Timaru in 1923 under the YMCA and although by 1928 organisers wanted to disband this club, it was reorganised under the name of the South Canterbury Amateur Athletic Club. At this stage the club appears to be at Ashbury Park where it had a 440-yard cinder track.

In the mid 1960s the club moved to the smaller Caledonian track on the south of Timaru. Apart from a brief sojourn to West End Park from October to December 1973 – when preparations were made at the Caledonian for the pre-1974 Christchurch Commonwealth Games fixture – the club remained there until moving to its current home of Aorangi Park in October 1983.

SCAAC, the All Weather Track Trust and the South Canterbury community celebrated the opening of the all-weather track at Aorangi Park in February 2004. Timaru staged the 2015 New Zealand Secondary Schools Championships and during the lengthy period when Christchurch had no all-weather track – following the demise of the QE II Stadium following the 2011 earthquake – Timaru was a regular training base for Christchurch-based athletes.

“Having the Christchurch athletes down here for training and also competition had a positive impact,” he explains. “I also think this was a period when we worked closely with the Christchurch officials in South Canterbury. Out of this we developed many top officials.”

Major Successes

Boasting a century-and-a-half of history, the club has produced a number of top-class athletes over the years. South Canterbury AAC’s Pat Boot secured 880yd gold at the 1938 British and Empire (now Commonwealth) Games. Between 1951 and 1972 the club developed an outstanding crop of javelin throwers, snaring a combined 25 national titles.

Olympians include Joanne Henry, who represented New Zealand at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, and Tokyo 2020 duo Tom Walsh (shot) and Lauren Bruce (hammer). Tom, of course, won shot put bronze at both Tokyo 2020 and the 2016 Rio Olympics, and has claimed three world titles (one outdoor and two indoor).

Joanne and Tom have both represented their country at the Commonwealth Games; Joanne winning heptathlon bronze at the 1998 Kuala Lumpur Games and Tom shot silver at the Glasgow 2014 Games, and four years later gold in Gold Coast. Other Commonwealth representatives include Craig Kirkwood, Dallas Roberts and Rowena Welford.

“Tom has been at the club since he was a young kid,” explains Mike. “I remember his dad giving the kids chocolate fish for the best grunt he heard in the shot circle!”

Club Philosophy

The club currently also boasts a proud crop of coaches led by Ian Baird – who guided Tom and Lauren’s early athletics development – Don Garland, Grant Lord and Craig Motley. Past influential coaches include Eldon Moffat and Doug McClymot.

Underpinning the actions of all club members is a strong and distinct philosophy, according to Mike: “The club provides opportunities for anyone interested in athletics to set goals and develop themselves, be they competitors, coaches or officials. We encourage all athletes to have fun to learn and achieve, and welcome anyone with an interest to find out what they enjoy doing the most.”

Celebrate Good Times

The 150th anniversary celebrations will take place over the Labour Day weekend of October 23/24. In a neat throwback to the past, the club are organising a one-off meeting in which some of those events first contested back in the early days of the event such as the stone throw, standing long jump, 100yd and 440yd dash and high jump (scissors only technique) will take place.

“The distances will all be measured imperially, and athletes can dress in whatever kit they want from over the past 150 years,” adds Mike. “It will be really interesting to see what will come out of the woodwork.”

An evening meal is also being organised to take place at Aorangi Park which a display of memorabilia charting the rich history of the club.

**** Athletics NZ would like to acknowledge the “125 Year History SCAAC 1871-1996” R. Bowden, L. Welford and Mike Bunckenburg for being the source for some of the above material.


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