Govt investment will give our athletes every chance of success as they compete internationally
The Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Paschal Donohoe, today (Friday) turned the sod on the National Indoor Arena, which will provide world-class indoor training facilities at the National Sports Campus in Blanchardstown.
Minister Donohoe said: ‘Long considered to be the missing piece in our national sporting infrastructure, I am delighted that the construction of the National Indoor Arena has now commenced and I look forward to seeing these works progress over the coming months. The development of the National Indoor Arena is very significant and will provide world-class indoor training facilities in which Irish athletes can train and prepare for international competitions. The Arena, which is due for completion in November 2016, will consist of three main indoor training centres:
- A National Indoor Athletics Training Centre, which will include a 200 metre track, sprint track, jump and throw areas and seating for up to 1,900 spectators
- A National Indoor Training Centre designed to cater for a wide range of sports; and
- A National Gymnastics Training Centre’.
“As one of the largest development projects of its kind in the country, this investment by the State will provide a variety of disciplines with the opportunity to showcase their sports and to host regional and national competitions in first-class settings. It will also fuel job creation with 250 jobs expected during construction stage.
“The development of the Arena demonstrates this Government’s commitment to Irish sport and to providing sporting facilities that will give our athletes every chance of succeeding at top levels internationally. I am particularly pleased that the High Performance Centre will be available to assist our elite athletes as they train, in their final year of preparation, for the Rio Olympic Games in 2016.”
The Minister today also viewed progress on other developments at the Campus, including the Irish Institute of Sport High Performance Centre and the Campus Pavilion Building, both of which are scheduled for completion in August. Along with these projects, the GAA and the FAI are currently completing works on their respective National Training Centre and National Centre of Excellence and two new Multi-Sport Turf Pitches have also been completed.
The Minister expressed his satisfaction at how the National Sports Campus facilities are progressing and thanked the Chairman, Board Members and Staff of the Authority for their work in bringing the Campus to this stage.
Chairman of the National Sports Campus Development Authority (NSCDA), Sean Benton said: ‘The past few short years have seen significant progress made in the provision of both sporting and administrative facilities here at the Campus. However, the next two years will see the Campus take a significant leap forward with the provision of the missing piece of national sporting infrastructure – the National Indoor Arena. This facility will enable over 20 different sports access to world-class training and competition facilities and help drive the development of Irish sport into the future’.
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