Location :

Gold Coast, QLD

Client :

Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games Corporation (GOLDOC) | Cockram

Year :

2017-2018

Sector :

Athletics | Natural turf | Stadium | Athletics tracks | Multi-use sports

Between 4 and 15 April 2018, more than 4,400 athletes from 71 Commonwealth Games Associations took part in the XXI Commonwealth Games, located on Australia’s Gold Coast; the fifth time Australia had hosted the event.

The official bid to host the Games on the Gold Coast was launched in August 2008 and on 11 November 2011, it was announced that Gold Coast City had won the rights to host. A year later, the oversight committee was formed and works commenced on preparing venues, noting that the bid was awarded on the claim that 80 of the venues already existed, and these would be complemented with a mixture of new permanent facilities, and temporary facilities - such as the beach volleyball courts, to manage expenditure.

Metricon Stadium (named Carrara Stadium for the event) was the main venue for the Athletics and the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, with the need to transform the venue from an AFL oval to a word-class athletics venue, and back again.

THE CHALLENGE

The existing stadium was required to be transformed into a world-class athletics venue, within a tight timeframe and in conjunction with the completion of the temporary stand that would limit access. The site was not available until after the last home game of the season for the Gold Coast Suns AFL team.

 

Following the completion of the Games, there were strict timeframes in which the stadium had to be reverted back to an AFL oval in readiness for the new season.

THE SOLUTION

SPORTENG worked closely with the Contractor to design a pavement that was to be constructed directly over the existing playing surface profile (after the organic layer was removed). This ensured it could be built quickly while still meeting the exacting requirements of the IAAF.

 

The pavement was verified in a pavement trial and deployed in the stadium for use in the games. The in-field area required the existing irrigation system to be re-designed to avoid over-spray onto the track and the turf grown off-site and brought in as mature turf to accelerate the establishment process.

THE RESULTS

Both competition and warm-up track and field facilities achieved IAAF Class 1 certification in the lead-up to the Commonwealth Games and the in-field areas were mature and grown-in ready for athletics use by the start of the games.

 

Following the completion of the Games, the track was removed quickly thanks to its temporary construction style and the oval returned to the being a high-quality AFL oval within the timeframes set by the Gold Coast Suns, and the first home game of the season went ahead as planned.

 

 

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