2011 WU Update : HOD Meeting Day 2

The brand new Ski Jumping venue in Erzurum

It was already the second and final day of inspections here in Erzurum for the Heads of Delegations. The agenda was full as the delegates wanted to visit all the outdoor venues.

They first went to the magnificent Palandöken ski resort that will host the Freestyle Skiing and Snowboarding events during the games. The Palandöken ski resort has been fully renovated and the HoDs could see a presentation of the venue made by the venue manager himself. Last March this venue hosted the Palandöken FIS Cup, a continental competition that attracts some excellent skiers. A snowboard event was also hosted during the same period. All of this under scrutiny from our technical delegates who made the trip for the occasion. In fact, they particularly appreciated the local technicians’ capacity to adapt as they had to deal with difficult snow conditions. Other test competitions will be taking place in there before our games start.

The HoDs then, paid a visit to the Ski Jumping area and were really impressed with what they saw. Indeed, there is no doubt that Erzurum, in the east of Turkey, will become the largest winter sports centre in the region – and that’s putting it mildly. This sports investment policy is a long term effort. The sports facilities will be in use all winter long by teams from other countries, some close by, some further away. The ski jump is a perfect example. Many cities hesitate to make this kind of investment but Erzurum will be adding a hotel, a panoramic restaurant and a gymnasium. Alongside the traditional K 120 (long hill event) and the K 95 (normal hill event), the centre will have three training hills for young skiers: K 65, K 40 and K 20. The ski jump centre is now essentially finished, and was inaugurated by the Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan himself during a visit to Erzurum early August. To underline the support of the Turkish government and the entire region of Erzurum, the Prime Minister was accompanied by the Minister of Health, Mr. Recep Akdag and the Governor of Erzurum, Mr. Sebahattin Ozturk.

The Konakli ski resort was the next step. This venue is totally new and will host the Alpine Skiing events. Once again the HoDs were impressed by the beauty of the surrounding and by the presentation of the sports infrastructures. The Konakli ski resort will be ready very soon and will be tested in December and early January.

After a lunch in Konakli, the HoDs were invited to join the Kandili resort. This is another brand new venue that will host the Cross Country and Biathlon competitions. The International Biathlon Union (IBU) was delighted to see the opening of this first Turkish Biathlon site on 8 July 2010. Ubaldo Prucker, who is the technical delegate and responsible for approvals at IBU stressed the quality of the facility set up especially for the Universiade. Clearly in the future, IBU will be taking a close look at any proposals from the city of Erzurum when it comes to organizing international Biathlon competitions.

The HoDs had the opportunity to inspect the slopes in details and were invited to ask question to the venue managers.

To close this session of inspections the HoDs went to the ice rink that will be used for the Curling Tournament.

Tomorrow, the HoDs will meet with the OC for the traditional “question and answer” session and for the Ice Hockey team draw.

(Text and pictures by Yvan Dufour)

 Presentation of the Konakli Ski Centre

Presentation of the Cross Country Skiing venue in Kandili

Presentation of the Biathlon venue in Kandili

Erzurum is waiting for you