About Us >> President's Message

Hello and welcome to the 2009/10 Little Athletics season at Hallett Cove.

Last year we had our biggest season since moving to the school in 2004 with 159 registered athletes. That was reflected at state level with SA Little Athletics having a record 7318 athletes registered.

At the end of last season SALAA hosted the National Little Athletics Championships at SANTOS Stadium. Hallett Cove were heavily involved with many parents acting as officials on the day, helping out with basket carrying, setting up the arena the day before and packing up in the dark on the day of the event. Despite the worst possible weather, the day turned out to be a great success. Thanks heaps to all those involved.

You may have read in the press recently about the government’s plans to introduce legislation for mandatory police checks for volunteers at children’s sport. You may have also read that, if passed, the legislation will not apply if parents are required to be present. (Note that SALAA policy is that all coaches and committee members have police checks every 3 years and Hallett Cove complies with that mandate.)

Several articles that I read referred to Little Athletics as setting the example, in that, we already have a mandatory parent participation policy (see pg 10). So, it’s probably timely to remind everyone that Little Athletics is not a “drop and run” sport. The committee and officials are unpaid volunteers and not there to baby-sit. A parent or carer must be present at the Centre while their children participate in Little Athletics.

It’s also an expectation that It’s also an expectation that parents/carers assist with the running of meets. To that end, this season we will be implementing a roster system for assisting with the Canteen/BBQ, setup, pack-up and key roles like starting and time-keeping. The roster will run over 6 weeks so you will know when your family’s turn is coming up. If everyone does their bit, I might even get to watch my own kids compete occasionally!

Enough of the serious stuff, remember that Little Athletics is about having fun and getting fit in a family friendly environment. It’s about improving each week, being your best, having a good time and making lots of new friends. Hope you enjoy season 2009/10!

Iain Carlin resident