Junior Commonwealth Games 2016 will go on.
The event is due to start on the 9th October 2016 with the teams warming up to compete in the 2016 Junior Commonwealth Games in Walvisbay, Namibia.
On the 23rd September, Gerhard Ferreira, MD of Gimtrac and Owner of the Centurion Gymnastics Centre in South Africa, received a call for assistance. Two weeks before the event was due to start – the container with all the equipment for the Games was not within sight of the harbor and would not dock in time for the event. No equipment means no competition!
The Games are an International event and a FIG sanctioned competition and therefore require all the equipment to be FIG certified. Namibia as the hosts purchased Gymnova equipment to be shipped in time for the Games. Unfortunately, something went horribly wrong with the shipping line and hence the panic.
The only facility in Southern Africa with a full set of FIG certified Gymnova equipment is CGC. Situated in Centurion South Africa. Quite a distance from Walvisbay – 1772km. CGC immediately showed their willingness to assist wherever possible and to make their equipment available for the Games. This would mean that the facility would be without training equipment for almost two weeks. The only additional hurdle to overcome is that the CGC do not possess the FIG certified mats and landing areas required to fulfill the FIG requirements.
This is where GIMTRAC and GYMNOVA came to the rescue. Various options where discussed between the three entities and it was decided in the end with time obviously being their worst enemy that everything possible would be done to ensure a successful Junior Commonwealth Games.
GYMNOVA undertook to immediately make plans to airfreight all the mats and landing areas required for the competition. Absorbing the cost of the airfreight as part of their ethical responsibility to ensure that the competition would continue.
The mats needed to be airfreighted to Johannesburg, South Africa as sending the shipment directly to a Namibian airport was not an option. This needed to be confirmed and dispatched within 7 days to meet the deadline. This would mean that someone would need to receive and clear the mats in South Africa and make the necessary arrangements to get the shipment to Walvis Bay.
GIMTRAC agreed to take the financial and logistical responsibility for the landing areas. The necessary arrangements were made with GIMTRAC’s clearing agent to clear the shipment on Sunday 02nd October at a great financial cost. A temporary export and bond was put in place for the mats to be sent via road freight across the border to Walvis Bay.
In conjunction with the mats the CGC packed up their equipment and delivered the lot to GIMTRAC. The mats and equipment where loaded onto an 18m truck and dispatched for Namibia. All within 7 days. Once the event is completed the equipment will be re-loaded onto the 18m truck and bought back to South Africa.
With the necessary FIG certified equipment and FIG certified landing areas the 2016 Junior Commonwealth Games will be a success thanks to the three Gymnastics Icons – GIMTRAC, GYMNOVA and the CGC.