With the Commonwealth Games taking place this month, we’re relieved to hear that Hampden Stadium, which was once Scotland’s national football stadium, is now ready for the event which starts on 23 July.
Hampden Park venue will be the focal point for the event, which lasts for seven days. The Games will involve almost 50 track and field disciplines, which will be competed by more than 1,000 athletes.
We were interested in how the transformation from football to athletics stadium took place, especially as we supply our own sports surfacing product, the popular Cloburn Red Granite Cresta™. To transform the stadium, eight rows of seats were removed, and the surface was raised around two metres so that it had the correct dimensions for an athletics track.
Contractors then added an infield with freshly-cut grass, which has been placed on a temporary deck. The deck is a construction masterpiece which consists of a whopping 1,000 base panels which are supported by over 6000 steel stilts.
Glasgow 2014 Chief executive David Grevemberg was impressed with the work when he visited at the end of last month. He told reporters;
"The spectacular transformation of Hampden Park from iconic football stadium to world-class athletics venue is an achievement of which Glasgow and Scotland can be justifiably proud.
"The completion of Hampden marks a very special moment in our journey to the starting line of what will be the biggest and best sporting festival Scotland has ever hosted."
It needed to be impressive of course; the crowd is expected to top 40,000 and organisers expect the Games to be watched by more than one billion people around the world.
The new track was tested by Team Scotland athlete Eilish McColgan who spoke about her excitement at hearing the ‘Hampden Roar’ from the Scottish athletics fans.
"Having the 'Hampden Roar' behind me as I push down the home straight will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience and I can't wait to give it my all and do my very best."
The running tracks will be relocated once the Games have closed, giving even more Scottish athletes a chance to train on a landmark track, and providing a legacy of the 2014 Games.
We know that everyone, whether competing in an International event or playing football for the school team, wants their sporting experience to be a good one – and Cloburn’s Red Granite Cresta™ is a popular solution for tennis courts, running tracks and football pitches.
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