Sport park’s family has grown and
is open to all
By Darren
Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex
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| Carter Beck hits a triple for the Berries on August 11. |
Way back on March 1, 2019, the Gordie Howe Sports Complex Management Incorporated officially took over management of the Gordie Howe Sports Complex. The non-profit body came into existence over the dream of having a unified group coordinate everything that went on at the sports park.
Before Gordie
Howe Sports Complex Management Incorporated came into existence, each sport was
responsible for coordinating the activities on the facilities on the Complex’s
grounds like Saskatoon Minor Football Field, the baseball and softball diamonds
and the Clarence Downey Speed Skating Oval in winter. The dream of a unified
group overseeing the operations of the sports park came with the hope things
could be run in a more positive manner for all sports groups that would
ultimately allow them to pull bigger events to the Complex.
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| A young cricket player practices making a defensive hit. |
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| Muriel Gieni has set numbers Canadian masters track and field records. |
“We created one of the top sports venues in Canada. We’re
fully self-operational. We’re a full-fledged business now.
“We hire students of all ages year round. We really fill a
void that has been in Canada about organizations taking a facility and growing
a facility and operating a facility all in one.”
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| Cadence Colborn drives a hit for the Prairie Dog Selects on August 3. |
“The 222’s (Fastpitch program players) come from all across Western Canada for their programs here,” said Johnny Marciniuk, who is the Gordie Howe Sports Complex Management Incorporated Operations Manager. “We’ve got people in their 20s and 30s and 40s who are playing ultimate disc here.
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| Ultimate disc is a sport that attracts a wide group of athletes. |
Over the past year and a half, the Complex has welcomed the
cricket community, who use the Indoor Training Centre for off-season work. The
Saskatoon Berries played their inaugural Western Canadian Baseball League
season in 2024 attracting an average of 1,931 spectators for 26 regular season
home dates at Cairns Field.
The track and field community has hosted the SHSAA
Provincial Championships for two straight years at the Track and Field Track.
It is common for that event to draw in 4,000 people between athletes, coaches,
support staff and spectators per day.
“For me, the
highlight of this year was the increased amount of new sports and new athletes
coming to the Complex,” said Kosteroski. “You look at how Cricket has grown.
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| The Mount Royal Collegiate Mustangs celebrate a win on Sept. 27. |
“The big thing
there is that I look at the amount of people that come to the Complex a year.
We say an average of 600,000, and we’re probably out of whack now. To me, that
is the biggest highlight for me on the Complex personally.”
On top of the various sports communities gaining special
experiences on the Complex’s grounds, Ignite Athletics has called the Complex
home since the Indoor Training Centre officially opened in March of 2019. The
crew at Ignite want to help the athletes they train to improve every day, so
they can meet their athletic goals.
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| The John Sands Classic Long Track Meet attracts a lot of skaters. |
“One of the
things I’m really proud of is this being the Canadian Sport Centre for
Saskatchewan in cooperation with Ignite Athletics, which is really cool and
prestigious for us here,” said Marciniuk. “Ignite was an instigator for that,
but they couldn’t have done it without the facility is what (Ignite Athletics
co-owner) Joel (Lipinski) was telling us.
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| The Glenn Reeve Fields become ski trails in the winter. |
“All of that is
awesome.”
As for some other
improvements in 2024, the Berries arrival saw the concession at the K+S
Potash Canada Multi-Sports Centre be revamped, new foul poles were added to all
the Glenn Reeve Field diamonds and a total of 80 trees were planted on
the Complex grounds. The City of Saskatoon helped out building a bike path and
new fencing along Dudley Street on the north side of the park.
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| The Saskatoon Wild Oats Rugby Club uses the Indoor Training Centre. |
“The Gordie Howe Sports Complex in the fiscal 2024 had major
business infrastructure adjustments where we created a new website, new booking
systems and new accounting systems,” said Kosteroski. “Why the Complex did that
was to ensure that we meet our customers’ demands and our growth needs in the
future.
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| The Sentinels Lacrosse Club enjoy practising at the Indoor Training Centre. |
“We had to increase our capabilities, but also adjust our
infrastructure to support that growth. That is huge for this business to do
those three big things in one year.”
Now, the
Gordie Howe Sports Complex is well into year six. Moving into the future,
Kosteroski said the various sports communities are working towards bringing
more major events to the Complex.
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| More big events like Softball Canada nationals will come to the Complex. |
“It took time for us to grow the infrastructure. Now for a
lot of sports, that infrastructure is in place. Now, it is time for them to
partner and start hosting major events, which we’re seeing a lot of verbiage
from and a lot of noise about.”
As the various processes unfold in bringing more big events to the Complex, Kosteroski said the Gordie Howe Sports Complex Management Incorporated will be there to continue to collaborate with those sporting groups adding that everyone on the Complex grounds is family.
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| The Berries salute their fans on August 13. |
For more information on the Gordie Howe Sports Complex, feel free to check out the Complex’s recently revamped website at gordiehowesportscomplex.ca.
