Ask Yourself Why … by NORRIE WILLIAMSON
The Safety in Sport Act was introduced in South Africa in 2010 to ensure standards around the FIFA World Cup , and for this reason was primarily written around stadiums , match and spectator scenarios , with the primary determinants of the risk level revolving around the history of fan interaction between the two competing teams , and what level of VVIP would be attending the event . While somewhat simplified , this does give an indication of the concerns around a venue-based sport , and why mass events such as the Cape Town Cycle Tour , Midmar Mile swim , Duzi Canoe Marathon and road races are generally considered low-risk .
Amendments to the Act and clarifications subsequently assisted mass participation events to grapple with the key relevant principles , and the reality and implementation of safety at these events is far more down to earth and practical . To a degree , it therefore appears a contradiction that smaller events can be a greater risk than the large events , but safety is more commonsense than rocket science , and has some key basics that one can expect any race organiser or race committee to appreciate if they have a few years of life under their belt .
ASK YOURSELF WHY …
Ask Yourself Why … by NORRIE WILLIAMSON
Why Safety First is More Than a Cliché !
Races often claim to have a “ runners first ” policy , and many do , but sometimes , even the biggest events may be simply paying lip service to what they believe runners want to hear . Now , any professional event organiser knows that he or she must put safety first when it comes to the runners , and if this is another area where ‘ lip service ’ is being paid , then that event organiser requires education !
Common Sense Stuff
Any organiser who thinks through the actions and objectives of the participants of an event – that ’ s athletes , workers , volunteers , officials , spectators , public and VIPs – will soon identify 80-90 % of the health and safety risks . It ’ s basically commonsense , like covering cables , marking tent pegs and ropes , clearance heights , filling holes and removing trip risks , and many more everyday things . You can add several more obvious aspects , such as clean water , certificates for food , traffic control , etc . Of course , the list is much longer than that , but it isn ’ t rocket science .
Similarly , the methodology to ensure safety is equally simple and achievable . First , identify the risks in every aspect of your event , then categorise these risks based on a ) likelihood of it happening , and b ) the impact if it does happen . The next step is to consider the means of reducing the risk factor , e . g . fence off areas , fill holes , re-route cables . All these options to reduce risk factors tend to come at some level
Full roads at the Comrades Marathon mean that safety measures must take into account road accessibility
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