Vehicle vandals can't stop Bream Bay College athletics day

Damage to Bream Bay College's grounds last weekend wasn't enough to stop the school's annual athletics day yesterday. Photo / Supplied

Vandalism to Bream Bay College's grounds wasn't enough to stop the school holding its annual athletics day yesterday.

The damage, said to have happened last Friday at 12.40am, suggested at least one vehicle had driven onto the grounds and ripped up significant amounts of grass and dirt, and badly damaging the school's running track.

The tyre tracks crossed directly over the school's athletics track which was used yesterday. Photo / Supplied

However, principal Wayne Buckland said restoring the field was a top priority to ensure the annual athletics would go ahead.

The vandalism to the ground was extensive. Photo / Supplied

"It was just about what we needed to do to get it sorted for athletics," he said.

"You look out there and see all the kids having fun, they have a ball on athletics day."

Bream Bay College head students (from left) Latham Aull, Lucy Bayer, Jack Boakes and Taylah Babbington stand beside principal Wayne Buckland (right) at yesterday's successful athletics day. Photo / John Stone

Although disappointed about the damage, Buckland said it was only the second time he could recall the field being vandalised in his tenure as principal since 2001.

"We encourage the community to be in the school outside of hours and they generally treat us pretty well."

Buckland had not heard back from police regarding who had done the damage.

Bream Bay College co-head boy Jack Boakes had been worried athletics would be cancelled. "I was glad when I found out it was still going ahead, but it was not a good thing to hear what happened, happened," he said.

Bream Bay College head students (from left) Jack Boakes, Lucy Bayer and Taylah Babbington crouch beside the damage done to their school's athletics track last Friday. Photo / John Stone

The 17-year-old said the field was one of the school's biggest assets, and events such as athletics day were very important to the students.

"It brings us together, it's just a wonderful day, out in the sun enjoying the summer."

Desite yesterday's unrelenting heat in Ruakākā, school records tumbled. In the intermediate boys' 200m, 15-year-old Tyzak Hita-Duval ran 23.99 seconds to break John Batger's time from 1970 by 0.7 seconds.

Liam Thornhill, 13, also broke the junior boys' 400m and 800m records.

In the 800m, Thornhill ran 2 minutes, 21 seconds to beat the record set by David Pegler in 1986 of 2:27:9.

In the 400m, Thornhill's time of 1:04 was more than two seconds faster than the record posted by current head boy, Boakes, in 2017.