INDEPENDENCE Park Limited (IPL) has been putting special measures in place to help protect the football field of the National Stadium during this week's Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA) Boys & Girls Athletics Championships.

During each shot put final, a section of the field is covered first with plywood and then tarpaulin is laid down on top of the wood.

IPL general manager Major Desmon Brown told the Jamaica Observer that it was to ensure that the field stays intact for the March 22 CONCACAF World Cup qualifier between Jamaica and Panama.

Late last year Brown said that only the finals of the shot put would be allowed inside the 'Stadium' with the qualifying events to be held at the Stadium East.

However, he noted that at the time they had not expected six shot put finals and so the extra preventative action was being put in place.

"With the six finals it would still be too much for us," Brown said.