On Friday, the city of Odessa will start removing sports equipment and construction structures – including football goals, bleachers, AstroTurf and fences – from UTPB sports facilities, as part of a agreement reached by city and university officials.

The property being removed is owned by various Odessa-based sports associations that have used UTPB facilities for up to 25 years. Sports association leaders decided to grab their equipment and relocate after being unable to negotiate a new contractual deal to continue using campus facilities.

“We are grateful that the city is working towards an orderly and professional transition to the UTPB sports grounds,” UTPB President Sandra Woodley said Thursday. “Contractually, the City has the right to remove the equipment and permanent structures from the UTPB park, and it has chosen to do so.

“Due to safety concerns related to the removal of the permanent structures, the City accepted the University’s request to use professional contractors to carry out this work. “

City manager Michael Marrero said Thursday that the sports association will be responsible for securing professional contractors, but city funds will not be used to pay them.

City staff will be on hand to ensure items are removed properly and campus grounds are returned to proper condition, Marrero added.

“The city pays nothing,” Marrero said. “We will help you if needed and oversee the work in progress to make sure everything is handled properly and safely. “

Once the equipment and structures are removed from the ground, members of sports associations will be responsible for transporting the equipment off campus, Marrero said.

The issue became a subject of controversy when at least one sports group started early last weekend removing goalposts and other equipment from the UTPB without permission.

Campus police eventually confronted and arrested the group.

According to the city’s agreement with the UTPB, only the city or a designated third party can collect the property.

City council on Tuesday asked city administrators to meet with UTPB officials this week to see if they would be willing to allow sports associations to remove their own equipment this weekend. The university’s response was a firm “no”, school officials said.

Items to be phased out by the city include 72 football goals, eight scoreboards, several storage buildings, fences, multiple bleachers, shade structures, concession fixtures, grounds maintenance equipment, ice systems, AstroTurf, batting cages and other items.

Football equipment is expected to be transported to Sherwood Park, where association football teams start playing on August 16.

Marrero said only certain items would be removed on Friday, with the remaining assets of the sports association being removed by August 31, when the city’s contract with the UTPB for the use of the sports grounds expires.

Woodley thanked the city on Thursday for its help in developing the UTPB athletic fields over the past 25 years and said the university remains committed to continuing to provide a space the community can use.

“The University is very grateful to (the) many community partners who have come forward to offer their support to improve the UTPB Park and improve the overall experience of the teams, organizations and associations who wish to use them. “said Woodley. “The University appreciates the overwhelming response from the community expressing a clear desire to see UTPB parks filled with activity and fun.”

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Odessa City Council on Tuesday asked city staff to try to negotiate a deal with the UTPB that would allow Odessa-based sports associations to immediately start removing sports equipment and construction structures they paid for. UTPB sports facilities.

Council members asked City Manager Michael Marrero and City Attorney Natasha Brooks to meet with UTPB officials this week to see if they would agree to let associations remove their equipment and buildings, which include several large storage facilities.

Marrero warned the council and sports association leaders that UTPB officials may not agree to the plan.

“Let’s talk to the University,” Marrero said. “As you know, their lawyers have a different interpretation of our agreement.”

Brooks said on Tuesday that its interpretation of the city’s contract with the UTPB allows the city to appoint a third party, in this case the sports association, to remove equipment and structures from the UTPB sports fields.

Lawyers for the UT System recently sent a letter to Brooks warning them that the current lease only allows the city to remove structures, not third parties.

Council was also forced to vote on whether to use bond certificates to pay for a $ 95 million rehabilitation of the current water plant.

That’s because representatives of the Ector County Republican Party submitted petitions ahead of the start of the meeting that would instead call on residents to vote on a bond issue to pay for the rehabilitation of the plant. COs only need a vote of the board to proceed.

The Ector County Elections Office is expected to review and verify signatures on petitions are valid by Saturday, Deputy City Manager of Administrative Services Cindy Muncy told council.

If the petitions are approved, the council will vote to accept the petitions at its Aug. 3 business meeting and set a bond election date, Muncy said. If the petitions are not approved, the council will likely vote on the OC issue at its August 10 meeting.

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Photos: (G) Swedish world record champion Daniel Stahl with a Nelco record; (R) Tajinderpal Singh Toor in India has been using ATE products for years.

ATE equipment was used by the Indian Kamalpreet Kaur. Many spectators have placed their biggest bets on Kaur winning an Olympic gold medal this year.

Another Meerut maker, Nelco Sport, also had roots in a city that is now part of Pakistan. Sialkot, a city in northeast Pakistan, was once home to skilled workers who helped solidify its reputation as a sports manufacturing center.

“When India was divided in 1947, many skilled Hindu craftsmen from Sialkot migrated across the border to the Punjab, settling in Jalandhar and Meerut, where the Indian sporting goods industry is. now based, ”Amber Anand, director of Nelco Sport, told VICE. Amber Anand is related to the Anand who run ATE although their businesses are entirely separate.

Nelco’s great success came at the 1982 Asian Games in New Delhi, when the company was selected as the official equipment supplier. Nelco’s equipment was then selected for use at the 1991 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.

Nelco and ATE are certified by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) for use at major sporting events, including the Olympic Games. Only equipment certified by the IAAF may be used at major sporting events, and only records set with this equipment are recognized in the books.

Using the “Indra” disc, ATE’s trademark, Indian athlete Krishna Poonia won the 2010 Commonwealth Gold Medal, setting a world record. Cuban athlete Yaime Pérez won women’s gold at the 2019 IAAF World Championships in Athletics using the same disc. When it comes to throwing tools, their ‘Fuego’ tungsten hammer made in 2019 has become the hammer of choice for world champions like Finnish hammer thrower Silja Kosonen. Nelco’s equipment has also been used by the current discus throwing world champion, Swede Daniel Ståhl.

Cuban athlete Yaime Pérez won the women’s gold medal at the 2019 IAAF World Championships in Athletics using the ATE-branded “Indra” disc.

At the Tokyo Olympics, Indian discus thrower Seema Punia will use the disc made by Bhalla International – another Meerut-based company and one of India’s largest exporters of sports equipment.

With contemporary athletics’ increased emphasis on innovation, the expectation to deliver massively on the technological front keeps the heat going.

“It is essential to keep reinventing our products,” said Anand of Nelco. “This is the only way for international athletes to buy our products. We can keep talking about our heritage, be moved by the age and establishment of the Meerut market, but if we can’t demonstrate cutting edge technology in the field, no one cares.

Meerut’s sporting goods industry is largely recovering from the blow the pandemic has dealt it. The city is also a hub for bats and crickets, but with the cancellation of sporting events and the closure of sports facilities and gymnasiums, the industry has been hit hard.

Manufacturers also had a hard time importing raw materials, and some suppliers have reported a drop of more than 50% in their sales. Now, however, with the return to normal and events like the Olympics helping to publicize this market, things are looking upbeat.

Is the Meerut market competitive? Not enough. If you ask the directors of ATE and Nelco, they will tell you that they are all trying to do their best – maybe healthy competition but nothing bad, they insist.

However, the biggest challenge for the sporting goods market in India is to fight against the stereotypes associated with the Made-in-India label.

“When it comes to the Olympics, athletes or their managers don’t physically come to our stores to buy products or order online,” Hetain Anand said of the process.

“We are supposed to submit our products to the Olympic organizers first. Players are then expected to vote for the products they need. But often, when they see India associated with a brand, regardless of the technological quality of the product, they reject it. But it really comforts us that there are still so many players voting for our products and using them successfully since 1992. ”

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India may be far from being a superpower in athletics, but equipment manufactured by companies in the country will be seen everywhere during the Olympic Games field events at Tokyo Olympic Stadium.

Of the six companies listed by the sport’s governing body, World Athletics, to provide equipment for shot put, discus and hammer events, three – Anand Track and Field Equipment (ATE), Bhalla International and Nelco – are based in India.

They will provide the shot put (7.26 kg), discus (2 kg) and hammer (7.26 kg) during the Olympics, which opens on July 23.

These tools are kept in a holding rack at the competition site from which participants can choose.

“We are providing six apparatus each for shot put, discus and hammer throw. So for the men’s and women’s events together, we are providing 36 apparatus during the Tokyo Olympics,” Adarsh ​​Anand said. from ATE to PTI.

“Our equipment has been in use at the Olympics from the 1992 Barcelona Games until now. In fact, our journey with athletics started in Tokyo at the 1991 World Championships,” he added.

The company has a head office in Meerut and also a factory in New Delhi.

Bhalla International is also providing 36 tools, six each for men’s and women’s shot put, discus and hammer throw.

“Our brand received the award for its high quality products at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. It is a proud privilege for our company and also for the country to be present at the Olympic Games”, said the representative of the company, Ashutosh Bhalla.

Many competing athletes come with their own custom tools, like a Neeraj Chopra would use a Nemeth or a Nordic brand javelin. But some athletes will use the apparatus kept in the racks of the competition site.

Three Indians, participating in the Tokyo Olympics, will use house brands.

“Tajinder Singh Toor and Kamalpreet Kaur will be using our shot put and discus. Also, I expect competitors from other countries to use our tools,” said Anand.

“Over the years, athletes from over 40 countries – from Europe and the United States – have used our tools in various high-level competitions all over the world,” he added.

Veteran Seema Punia will use the disc made by Bhalla International, also a Meerut-based company and one of the country’s largest exporters of sports equipment.

“Seema Punia is using our drive and I am also expecting other competitors,” Bhalla said.

But the machines are not provided to the organizing committee in lieu of money.

“It’s kind of an advertisement. Our products are seen at the biggest sporting event in the world and the athletes will know our brand and our quality and they can try them out in the future,” Bhalla said.

A good quality shot put, discus or hammer costs between Rs 6,000 and Rs 10,000.