Giving fillip to development of sports infrastructure in the city, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy inaugurated an indoor sports facility at the Greenfield stadium on Thursday.
Exactly a year after the successful conduct of the 35{+t}{+h}National Games, the proposed indoor sports facility has now become a reality and is a significant milestone in the history of sports in the State.
The Indoor Sports Facility (ISF) is a multi sports floor spread over an area of 58,000 square feet on the premises of the Greenfield stadium in Kariyavattom.
At the first level, there are three basketball, three volleyball and 12 badminton courts. The flooring is made of high quality Canadian Maple wood and adhers to International Basketball Federation (FIBA) norms.
At the second level, there is enough space to put 20 table tennis tables. The lighting inside the hall is of top quality.
An Olympic size eight-lane outdoor swimming pool and a mini four-lane indoor swimming pool, three tennis courts, two squash courts, open space for conducting aerobics, yoga and a modern gymnasium are other facilities at the centre, which will be known as Sports Hub.
A 40-room club house, convention centre, retail market, restaurants and multiplexes will come up around the stadium, which is the first one to be built on a PPP model in India.
The Greenfield stadium is also one of the few select stadiums in the world, which has fulfilled the norms laid down by both FIFA and ICC for conducting football and cricket matches. The stadium, built at cost of Rs.161 crore, can accommodate 50,000 spectators and was the venue of the SAF football championship early this year.
Anil Kumble’s company Tenvic, which has been formed to identify talent at grassroots, will work closely with Karyavattom Sports Facilites Limited to nurture talent among children aged between eight and 16.
