For 16 years, the George Odlum Stadium has carried a double life: hospital in one wing, sports ground in another. What began as a temporary fix has helped to shape the training lives of countless young athletes—a compromise that became a way of life.
Now, with promises from the government that the reconstruction of the St Jude Hospital will be completed by the end of this year, the prospect of the hospital finally moving out has renewed questions about what the stadium’s future could be.
Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre has said funds remaining from the hospital reconstruction would be channeled into refurbishing the George Odlum Stadium, raising hopes among the sporting community that the facility could one day resemble the national complex it was meant to be.
A compromise that never ended
When St Jude relocated to the stadium in 2009, the arrangement was billed as temporary. Instead, it has facilitated a generation of athletes who have trained and competed alongside patients.
“We just come through the main entrance like anyone else,” said World Athletics coach, technical official, and St. Lucia Times sports editor Terry Finisterre.
“Patients are being brought in, and we just walk by and head into the facility. It’s unusual, but it’s what we have.”
Field events such as the javelin and discus are still occasionally held, but the once-certified track has fallen into disrepair.
“Only parts of the east side can be used for short training runs,” said Theodore Henry Bailey, technical director with the Saint Lucia Athletics Association.
“The 400-meter loop is no longer usable.”
Even so, athletes and coaches have adapted.
“The hospital situation has obviously had an impact on us, but it’s not stopped us from training or competing,” said Finisterre.
Decline before the fire
Problems at the stadium, however, predate the hospital. Built in 2002 with assistance through a grant from the People’s Republic of China, it was hailed as one of the region’s most “well appointed”, with space for expansion into a full sports complex. By 2008, though, sea blast and rust had taken their toll.
Donovan Williams, permanent secretary in the Ministry of Youth and Sports from 2008 to 2012, said upkeep was a constant struggle: “Sports Saint Lucia Inc. had a very small team. They did their best, but the resources were nowhere near what was needed to maintain a facility of that size.”
Ahead of the 2009 CARIFTA Games, the track had to be torn up and replaced entirely.
“There was no way they would sanction an event of that standard on that surface,” Williams recalled.
Looking ahead
The prospect of reclaiming the stadium has revived old ambitions. When it was first built, plans had included a hostel, swimming pool, and facilities for volleyball, football, and netball. Those dreams stalled when the hospital moved in.
“There are some obvious things that clearly need to be done,” Williams said.
“The playing surface must be upgraded to FIFA and CONCACAF standards, the track resurfaced, roofing made permanent, proper seating, and spaces for other sports.”
Bailey said the cost will be high: “You’re talking about a full resurface, replacement of all competition equipment, even reintroducing sprinklers. It’s quite a bit the government would have to spend to bring it back to its glory days.”
Finisterre warned that any revival must go beyond bricks and mortar.
“The long-term plan cannot just be, ‘I have the facility; therefore, things will run’,” he said.
“It has to include the surrounding area, it has to include the amenities. And you can’t just build a physical facility; programmes must be created and funded to make real use of it.”
For now, the stadium remains both hospital and training ground, a symbol of compromise. For the athletes who have endured its strange duality, the hope is that when St Jude finally departs, the George Odlum Stadium will not simply return to what it was but finally become what it was originally meant to be.
