ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 Managing Director & CEO, Chris Dehring, believes scepticism regarding the Caribbean’s ability to host international cricket’s showpiece has disappeared. In a wide-ranging interview to mark the…
ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 Managing Director & CEO, Chris Dehring, believes scepticism regarding the Caribbean’s ability to host international cricket’s showpiece has disappeared. In a wide-ranging interview to mark the six-month countdown to the tournament’s Opening Ceremony, he noted that as “stadiums have come out of the ground” and other major developments have been taking place in preparation for the Event, people within the region and around the world are speaking with more assurance about the ICC Cricket World Cup.
“We are moving along and we are on track. We should be collectively proud of what we are achieving though we will still have many challenges to overcome along the way. People are getting excited and momentum is building towards the (Cricket) World Cup. This week we have sponsors from around the world gathering together to discuss their preparations for it. Now it’s on everybody’s agenda,” said Dehring, who is attending ICC CWC 2007 Venue Summit X in Barbados.
Repeating his oft-heard mantra “failure is not an option”, the ICC CWC 2007 Managing Director stated that, throughout the nine Host Venues, the fact that everyone is “absolutely sure that we want to host the Cricket World Cup” has been a significant motivating factor in getting things done.
The prospect of ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 being “great” and not just “good”, he added, would require all Caribbean people taking on the tournament as their responsibility – coming out and supporting the Event and leaving a positive impact on every visitor with whom they come into contact.
“We need everyone in the trenches, working to make this a success. We have the governments, we have people in the LOCs (local organising committees), the Board of Directors, the volunteers, the staff at Cricket World Cup headquarters – but we also need all the people around the region to make this a truly great event,” he said, acknowledging that some people may not yet fully grasp the magnitude of cricket’s most prestigious tournament.
In fact, he conceded that the Caribbean could be in for “a bit of a surprise” with the thousands of fans who will descend on the nine Host Venues next March and April. He cautioned that even though it has been reported that some matches, including the Final, have no more tickets for sale via Public Ticketing, countries should be prepared for many more fans who just want to come and savour the tournament atmosphere.
“If India reaches the Final, you could still have thousands of Indians coming to Barbados, without tickets, just to be there. That’s why it’s always difficult assessing how many visitors will attend world games like these.”
Though also commenting positively on tournament preparations, ICC CWC 2007 Venue Development Director, Donald Lockerbie, reminded that “we can’t pat ourselves on the back too much”.
“I am confident that we are getting to a stage where we will be comfortable when the ICC and GCC come to inspect the stadiums at the end of November. The best way we can continue to help the tournament is by having the stadiums ready when we said they would be (ready). We (Venue Development) were the first to come out of the blocks and we’re going to be the first to be reviewed. We are the next big target and we have to keep moving forward,” he told participants at the opening session of Venue Summit X at Hilton Hotel.
Meanwhile, meetings continued between the Host Venues and various ICC CWC 2007 entities such as GL Events (who have been contracted to be the primary supplier of overlay materials), the Design Team, the Pitch & Field officials, the Ticketing Unit and the Venue Graphics team.
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