The council says its large hall just isn't suitable, but the 80 year old club says it won't stop them trying to find a perfect home for the growing sport Abby Hook reports.
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00One of the oldest of its kind in Kent, Medway Roller Dance Club have been skating since 1949.
00:10Groups of all abilities and ages are currently in training,
00:13some for the 2025 national competitions and some for the British Championships.
00:19But a battle with Medway Council about space to practice in has taken centre stage.
00:25Medway Park has got fantastic facilities there.
00:28We have used their smaller hall before, which they've now re-coated,
00:32but it's not suitable for us because it's too sticky.
00:36But their larger hall, which I know they have some fantastic events on in there,
00:41we've tried to use since 2012, but we've never been able to use it, unfortunately,
00:46and without really a reason.
00:49This is only four courts, and we really struggle to get everything on,
00:53especially for championships, because they have huge floors I have to skate on.
00:57In a statement, Medway Council said,
00:59Unfortunately, the large hall at Medway Park is not suitable for skating,
01:03which the club have been advised of.
01:05We have discussed the possibility of the club using the smaller hall,
01:09which has recently been upgraded and can be used for skating.
01:12However, the club did not find the surface suitable.
01:16They feel that we're damaging it, but they haven't actually seen the skates
01:20and that they wouldn't actually damage the floor at all.
01:24I mean, this equipment is £500 plus they spend on these skates.
01:30They just wouldn't ruin the floor.
01:33While the search for a bigger hall continues,
01:35the skaters have another challenge to face too,
01:38in getting their sport more widely recognised by authorities here in the UK.
01:43Ice skating is so big, and it is the equivalent.
01:47We are just doing the same thing, and so many of the rules align as well now.
01:50Post-Covid, we've seen a real increase in skaters all the way through,
01:54people just coming in and just trying it one day and staying with us.
01:57So I think there's definitely a space for it to grow,
02:00but it is quite big in this part of the country,
02:02so we're just a small part of that, but quite a big club.
02:06So do they have any room for one more?
02:12So I managed to find these at the back of the cupboard, blown off the dust.
02:16I've skated a few times in my life, but not quite to the level that these guys are at.
02:21So Sam and Nathan are going to give me a bit of a lesson. Wish me luck.
02:27So the instructors would have put me around a level one, even with that performance,
02:31but when you compare my work to that of the competitors,
02:35elegance, elegance,
02:37you can see why they train for months.
02:43I spoke too soon.
02:45No medals for me, but this club will continue to keep their eyes on the prize
02:50and on a bigger haul.
02:52Abbey Hook for KMTV in Gillingham.