A cacophony of sound thanks to World Beaters percussion band as Mayor of Gateshead Cllr Maureen Chaplin and 2012 Olympic hopefuls Richard Kilty and Sally Scott prepare to raise the 2012 flag.
Gateshead Council has launched a search for a development partner to help it transform Gateshead International Stadium into a world-beating Sports Village.
The proposed seven acre development would offer a range of new sporting facilities to complement the existing International Stadium, Indoor Athletics Hall, sports academy and English Institute of Sport Performance Centre.
The centrepiece of the new development would be a new ice arena catering for public skating, ice hockey and other ice events, with expressions of interest from potential developers and operators currently being sought. The new ice arena would help meet current demand in the North East.
It is intended that the ice arena would be just part of a range of world-class facilities at the Stadium which will attract athletes from throughout the region and offer world-class facilities capable of being used as a training base for international teams competing in major sporting events.
The announcement was made on Sunday 24 August at Gateshead International Stadium as part of the Olympic ‘Fly The Flag’ ceremony, where the Mayor of Gateshead, Councillor Maureen Chaplin was joined by two young athletes from Gateshead Harriers to raise Gateshead’s Olympic Flag. The ceremony coincided with the handover of the Olympic Flag to the Mayor of London as part of the closing ceremonies of the Beijing Olympic Games.
Announcing the start of Gateshead’s search for a developer, Councillor David Napier, Cabinet member for Culture, said:
“Gateshead International Stadium is already a world-famous athletics venue, and its reputation as a major training facility is growing. Our aim now is to capitalise on what we already have here by developing something really special.
“Our selection by the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games as a Pre-Games Training Camp for 2012 has given us the impetus to develop our existing sports facilities even further.
“Gateshead Council is investing £29m in new sport and leisure facilities in Gateshead, building two new leisure facilities and redeveloping Gateshead Leisure Centre, Dunston Pool and Birtley Pool. Now we are looking for a developer to take on an even bigger challenge, by creating the region’s top ice arena and laying the foundations to a sports village worthy of Olympic champions.”
He added: “In seven days time, some of the greatest athletes in the world - many of them just back from Beijing - will be competing at an international Grand Prix athletics event here at Gateshead International Stadium, the first time that most of us will have had the chance to see these Olympians in action. That’s the kind of event that Gateshead has become renowned for, and that’s why we are looking to build on our reputation.”
As well as an ice arena, development interest is also being sought for a range of other facilities, such as a Snowdome offering all-season winter sports, a Links golf course, retail facilities, restaurants and cafes.
In addition, Gateshead Council is also keen to investigate the creation of new watersport facilities on the nearby River Tyne. Plans are also being made to improve and update the existing stadium which will see major improvements for both competitors and spectators.