The following statement was given today in the House of Assembly by the Honourable Steve Crocker, Minister of Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation:

Speaker, it is my pleasure to rise in this honourable house today to share some exciting news. As I am sure everyone is well aware, the City of St. John’s is hosting the 2025 Canada Summer Games. It will be an excellent event for not only the capital city, but for all of Newfoundland and Labrador.

I am pleased to share with my colleagues today that we will be building a brand new, state of the art track and field facility. This facility will support the 2025 Games, giving athletes and coaches top-notch facilities from which to train and perform.

This project will be cost-shared between the federal, provincial and municipal governments. The City of St. John’s will be issuing a Request for Proposals for this facility.

The proposed facility will not only create a quality athletics facility in the metro St. John’s region that meets Canada Games technical standards, but will also add a significant piece of sport infrastructure to benefit youth of all ages.

The proposed facility will also support active healthy living opportunities for residents in the region, long after the Games have ended. This facility has the potential to be widely utilized by community members of all ages.

It will also enable Newfoundland and Labrador to attract more large-scale sporting events in the years to come, bringing athletes, coaches and their families to our province, benefiting our tourism industry.

Thank you, Speaker.