The Morton Stadium in Dublin got a major upgrade this summer that confirmed its status as Ireland’s foremost athletics facility, with much of the attention focussed on Mondo’s blue Sportflex Super X 720™ K39 track.
Based at Dublin City University (DCU) in the northern Dublin suburb of Santry, the laying of the track – which saw the installation of an eight lane 400m track with 10 lanes on the 100m straight, as well as the runups for four horizontal jumps pits – was part of a refurbishment that reinforced the venue’s prestigious title as the National Athletics Stadium.
In addition to the tracks at the stadium, a World Athletics Certified Facility which was originally built in 1955 by local club Clonliffe Harriers who still call it home, the extensive renovation also featured upgrades to the high-performance gym and changing rooms, new drainage and cross-track electric power outlets, new fencing and stand seating as well as new track and field equipment.
“The National Athletics Stadium now provides state-of-the-art training and competition facilities for our members, supporting them on their journey to realise their full athletic potential. Congratulations to DCU who have led this special project and delivered a world-class outcome” commented Athletics Ireland CEO Hamish Adams, ahead of the stadium’s re-opening on 12 June this year.
Little more than a month later, the stadium staged Ireland’s premier one-day meeting, the Morton Games, on 14 July and the Mondo track proved to be a winner on the night with athletes and spectators alike.
One of the highlights of this year’s meeting, a World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze meeting – at a stadium which is close to Irish athletics aficionados’ hearts for the four middle and long distance world records and three world bests that have been set there – was the men’s mile which saw South Africa’s Ryan Mphahlele triumph in a personal best of 3:54.48.
Mphahlele led home no less than six men inside 3:57.00, all of whom went faster than they had ever run ever before over the classic distance,
Getting probably the biggest cheers of all was 18-year-old Nicolas Griggs in third place, who set Irish U20 and U23 records of 3:55.73.
Astute observers on the night noted that Mphahlele’s time was almost exactly the same as Herb Elliott’s famous mile world record of 3:54.5 on the same track, albeit of the cinder variety of that era, back in 1958.
The coincidence was especially redolent as the Morton Games in its current form was inaugurated in 2008 to mark the 50th anniversary of the legendary Australian’s feat five decades previously which saw him improve the mile world record by a stunning 2.7 seconds.
After the 2023 Morton Games, DCU’s Head of Athletics Paul Byrne talked about the track that had been installed by Mondo.
Q: Why did DCU choose Mondo?
A: Because Mondo is renowned with athletes and coaches worldwide for providing the best quality tracks and DCU chose a Sportflex Super X 720™ K39 track as it provides the right balance between competition and training. DCU Morton Stadium is the National Athletics Stadium in Ireland and we wanted to ensure fast times [in major domestic and international competitions] while also supporting our students and athletes training with the best surface available.
Q: How do you feel the track performed during the Morton Games?
A: The Morton Games was the first main competition on the new rack. There were many personal bests as well as a stadium record [100m hurdles winner Sarah Lavin, from Ireland, clocked 12.79) at the meeting so there was a very positive response from the athletes themselves who felt the track was very fast, and they also liked the blue surface a lot. Previously, the track had been a red Mondo track, so it was a big visual change. Athletes who have raced and trained on the track since it has reopened have been very positive in their feedback. We are glad to have chosen Mondo for the DCU Morton Stadium and we look forward to many years of fast times and big performances in the future.
The recently announced calendar for the 2024 World Athletics Continental Tour will see next summer’s Morton Games staged on 12 July.
Once again, the Morton Mile will feature among the 12 international events with expectations high that both the track and the performances will again produce a spectacle that makes headlines.