Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: By the time the first test event at the Olympic Games golf venue takes place early next year a total of 35 Jacobsen turf maintenance machines will be employed at the Gil Hanse-designed course.

In the interim, Jacobsen’s Product Support Manager, Andrew Echenique, will be providing technical training for Course Superintendent Neil Cleverly’s team and he will be part of a team of Jacobsen technicians who will be running the maintenance facility over the course of the event.

During the Games, the course will host two 60-competitor tournaments with the women’s event following the men’s competition over a two-week period. It will accommodate 2,500 spectators in grandstands with space for a further 17,500 around the course.

‘Legacy’ is an important word in Olympic circles and the Rio Olympic Golf Course is no different. The International Golf Federation (IGF), who successfully lobbied for golf’s return to the Games, will organise the two events and are responsible for ‘promoting a positive legacy from the Olympic Games’.

Post-Games the course will be the only 18-hole public facility in Rio de Janeiro and Brazil. The clubhouse will become a multi-purpose venue used for public meetings and social engagements, while the driving range and golf academy will be used for golf practice, instruction and education.

Perhaps the most important legacy will be the implementation of a youth development programme dedicated to providing young people of all backgrounds opportunities to continue their education and develop their character through golf.

Funding from the Brazilian Olympic Committee to the Confederation of Brazilian Golf will be used for junior golf initiatives around Brazil.

From an ecological and environmental perspective, degraded land will be restored by the creation of green space with local access. The venue will be certified as environmentally sustainable by creating a watershed and providing attenuation, natural filtering and water treatment.

The bio-diversity of the area will be enhanced by managing the water run-off, thereby conserving the soil structure and restricting erosion. Improvements in the eco-system will increase native plants and encourage local wildlife.

Finally, the return of golf has the potential for increased awareness and interest in the sport, not only in Brazil, but across the globe; increased accessibility to play due to the public nature of the 18-hole course and, eventually, increased participation in golf.

At the IGF Olympic Golf Forum during January’s PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando, Peter Dawson, President of the IGF, said: “We began this project of bidding for golf to return to the programme of Olympic sports because so many small countries, small in golfing terms, really needed some help to grow the game.

“The growth of the game is worldwide and the inclusion of golf in the Olympic programme is the biggest ‘grow the game’ opportunity we had and that continues to be the case.”

Alan Prickett

The final word is left to Alan Prickett, Managing Director of Ransomes Jacobsen in the United Kingdom and a former Board Member of the Asian Golf Industry Federation.

He said: “With just a year to go before the Opening Ceremony in Rio, everything now looks in place to ensure that golf’s return after a century’s absence, will have a positive influence on the game.

“From Jacobsen’s perspective we are delighted to be involved, in some small way, in this historic event.”

via Legacy Plans in Place for Rio Olympic Golf Course – Asian Golf Industry Federation.