Olympian MSP hails Ayr’s new sporting complex as a ‘godsend’
A distinguished retired athlete turned MSP has hailed Ayr’s new sports arena as a ‘godsend’.
The Riverside Sports Arena at Craigie in Ayr officially opened last week and offers athletes and rising sports stars brand new indoor and outdoor training spaces to excel in a variety of sports.
The £8.5million facility includes an eight-lane 400m running track, a six-lane 60m indoor running track, a field events area and an all-weather 3G pitch.
Olympic MSP Brian Whittle, who was born and raised in Troon and skated with Ayr Seaforth, has represented Britain 45 times including at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.
He won gold medals in the 4x400m relay at the 1986 and 1994 European Athletics Championships and is perhaps best known for running his leg of the 1986 World Championships with just one shoe – and still managing to set a personal best.
Brian, now a South Scotland MSP and athletics coach, said of the new Riverside Sports Arena: “It’s a bit of a godsend. It’s a great facility.
“Everyone is a winner from this.
“Ayr is getting a much better facility in terms of a booth and all; a track that is much more user-friendly and an indoor facility that you need these days.”
Brian said the new facilities and the option of an indoor track will allow athletes to train in the winter, which he was only able to do on his days of competition when he traveled to Coatbridge some 40 miles away.
The father of three said: “When I first started training I was at Troon and the course was a grass track at the bottom of the rugby pitch – and that’s where I trained over the summer. In winter we just walked around the streets.
“I can remember they were discussing building an all-weather track at Dam Park and originally the plan was for a six-lane track and we joined the fight to get eight lanes so we could have championships and competitions there.
“Before the all-weather track was there, I had to go to Coatbridge for the first practice on a track in the winter. I used to drive into Coatbridge once a week and that was before the M77.
“When Dam Park opened, it was a bit of a stroke of luck for us.
“I’m sad it’s over, it had to happen – but it means I don’t have the track record anymore!”
Brian recalled that infamous moment that earned him the nickname ‘One-Shoe Whittlet’: “It’s been so long, but every day I hear someone say, ‘Have you got both shoes on, big man?’
“Actually, I was a reserve player – so was Kriss Akabisi.
“When Akabusi gave me the baton, he stood on the heel of my shoe, ripped it off and that was it. You had no choice but to leave.
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“Fortunately, it ended well and brought us our first major medal. It was 1986 but I still remember everything we did.
“The legacy of all of this was a long-lasting friendship.”
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