State government red tape throws fate of Little Athletics carnivals in doubt

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State government red tape has thrown the fate of regional Little Athletics carnivals in doubt.

The 2021 Region Track and Field Carnivals, due to be held on February 13 and 14, have been cancelled.

In a statement, Little Athletics Victoria said it was forced to cancel the events because has not yet received legal approval from the state government to hold the events.

“It is now clear that time has run out to satisfactorily and confidently organise the events,” the statement read.

Neil Mitchell says it’s “one of those signs of COVID stupidity”.

Kate, a health professional with 12-years experience in infection control, has a daughter who competes in Little Athletics.

She says it’s “madness” that the carnival has been put in this position.

“There’s no groups of people standing around, not like the tennis!,” she said.

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Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events, Martin Pakula, says the carnivals have been approved by the state government, but he understands they may not have been approved early enough for the events to go ahead.

“We understand that the timeline is very tight,” he told Neil Mitchell.

Mr Pakula says he “doesn’t know” how long the Little Athletics application for event approval was waiting before approval.

“The public events process is a pretty extensive process. There are literally thousands of applications that have been received,” he said.

“Most events are getting their approvals one to two weeks in advance.

“I accept that with Little Aths that one to two week period, given the volunteer nature of the workforce trying to pull it together, they say it’s not long enough.”

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