Sports Village can be home to future Olympic stars
Stadium on track for 2009
Published:
WHILE Aberdonian athletes recover from competing on the big stage in Beijing, it is hoped a new city facility will house the next generation of stars.
Phase one of the Aberdeen Sports Village is well on course for completion next summer.
The £28 million development on the site of the former Chris Anderson Stadium continues to be constructed at a frantic pace.
The initial portion of the project features a 17,000 square metre indoor facility.
The vast venue includes a nine-court indoor hall, full-sized synthetic football pitch, fitness suite, squash courts and a sports performance lab among other facilities.
This will be complemented by an outside running track and football pitch, complete with 500-seat stand.
There will also be an international standard floodlit water-based hockey pitch.
Director of sports development at Aberdeen University, David Beattie, hopes having a sporting hub in the city will help produce young athletes capable of participating at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
He said: “It takes time, there needs to be a coaching base, athletes coming in, and facilities, along with luck and endeavour.
“But it would be great if someone came through to go to the Olympics or Commonwealth Games.
“The Commonwealth Games are in 2014, and we can get people started here next year.
“Athletes around 14 or 15 years old are young enough to do it, and it is a great opportunity for them.
“Youngsters who watched the Olympics will hopefully get the bug to try sport.”
Chairman of Aberdeen Sports Village Ltd, George Yule, would love for the facility to be a base for budding Olympic athletes.
He said: “Having seen what has been delivered by Team GB in Beijing, this will be a great place for the North-east to sow seeds and invest in Olympians of the future.”
David also believes the Sports Village will allow top sportsmen and women from the North-east to train closer to home.
He said: “Having somewhere for local people who perform on the national scene to train is a great thing for Aberdeen.
“Hopefully it will stop them from going further afield because there will be quality facilities here.”
They could be joined by athletes from other countries in preparation for the London 2012 Olympics and Glasgow Games two years later.
The Sports Village has been named an official 2012 training venue, one of 635 across the country.
The Linksfield Road site could host badminton, basketball and table tennis players on their way to London.
The RGU sports centre, Robert Gordon’s College and Denwood Target Shooting Centre are other potential bases for athletes.
David revealed all four venues are working together towards attracting athletes.
He said: “The aspiration is to get an Olympic team here.
“It would be great for the city if a good quality team came north.
“We’d really like to link up 2012 and 2014 by having a team train here ahead of both Games.
“The other facilities in Aberdeen have come together to try to attract countries to the city with some joined-up thinking.”
The Aberdeen Sports Village is not just going to be a training base for top athletes, though.
George stressed the goal is to have a facility accessible to the entire community.
He said: “The phrase that comes to mind is ‘sport for all’.
“First and foremost, that’s what it’s about. It just so happens the facility is certainly appropriate for elite athletes.
“It was created for the broad community at large.
“Some people believe it is purely for elite athletes or Aberdeen University, but it is not, it is for everyone throughout the North-east.”
The Sports Village could soon expand, as there are already indicative plans for a phase two, featuring more football pitches heading towards Golf Road.
The final phase will hopefully see the construction of a 50 metre swimming pool.
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