PHILIPSBURG--The Boardwalk Sports Park will be officially opened Saturday. Minister Rodolphe Samuel and the Department of Sports, within the Ministry of Education, Culture, Youth, and Sports invites the public to the grand opening from 4:00 to 6:30pm The Boardwalk sports park has been developed in collaboration with Port St. Maarten Group, Argos Cement, and the Minister of Finance Ardwell Irion. The public will have the opportunity to try out the fitness equipment and partake in a beach volleyball, beach football or bocce ball, as well as participating in various games organized by Fire Fit Gym, Sint Maarten Bodybuilding and Fitness Association, Monster Factory, Sint Maarten Beach Volleyball Association, Sint Maarten Volleyball Association, Sint Maarten Football Federation and Special Olympics Sint Maarten.
The park features a fitness circuit with 9 different fitness stations including a wheelchair-friendly device, a calisthenics device, two FIVB-approved beach volleyball fields, an official 60ft bocce ball court, and two small-size goals for beach football. In addition, a calisthenics device was also placed in collaboration with Argos Cement at the Belvedere sports park complementary to the existing fitness machines. With the Department’s “sport for all” vision, the “Sint Maarten Sports Facilities policy was developed and approved in 2021 highlighting the need to integrate sports spaces into spatial planning and to facilitate an active and healthy lifestyle for all citizens through activating opportunities for physical activity in the public space. Based on the Sports Facilities' policy, an “activating public spaces for physical activity plan” was developed to provide opportunities to maximize the potential of public spaces suitable for physical and recreational activities.
Some of the ideas lay focus on outdoor fitness, calisthenics, and beach sports. In collaboration with Port St. Maarten Group, the boardwalk was identified as a great location as it is currently a highly visited area for physical activity in the public space as it is used for cardio exercise. The materials are also easily removable in case of hurricanes or other usages of the area and will be maintained on a weekly basis.
