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06/08/2018 | Campus-Meldung

New artificial turf pitch inaugurated at the Auepark sports facility

The city of Kassel, the state of Hesse and the university inaugurated a new artificial turf pitch on Damschkestraße today (June 8). The new pitch is connected with the construction of a large sports hall, which the city and the university will use jointly. For sports students, an attractive center has been created in recent years between the Auestadion and Fulda.

Image: City of Kassel.
Mayor Christian Geselle, Minister of the Interior Peter Beuth, University Vice President Prof. René Matzdorf, City Building Councilor Christof Nolda and the Stavo kickers from Kassel City Hall are delighted with the new artificial turf pitch.

"With the now 10th artificial turf playing field in Kassel, the sports infrastructure in Kassel is further strengthened. Our city's sports clubs, Kassel's school sports and the university's students can all enjoy the facility, which can be used all year round," explained Lord Mayor Christian Geselle at the inauguration of the new artificial turf playing field at the city's Auepark sports facility.

The conversion of an existing hard court into a new artificial turf playing field is connected with the construction of a three-field sports hall on the grounds of the Auepark sports facility, which is being built in cooperation between the city of Kassel and the University of Kassel as part of the TASK project. This measure is supported and promoted by the state of Hesse, as the Hessian Minister of the Interior Peter Beuth explained: "With the inauguration of the artificial turf pitch and the construction of the three-field hall, the necessary conditions are in place for the 'Transfer and Application Center Kassel' to start its work. The state has funded the construction of this facility with almost 2.4 million euros from the special investment program 'Outstanding Sports Facilities', thus strengthening Kassel as a sports location, developing it further and making it fit for the future."

For University Vice President Prof. René Matzdorf, the new facility is another building block that increases the university's attractiveness for students: "The artificial turf field expands our possibilities in teacher training as well as for university sports and provides more planning security, especially for tournaments and other sporting events: If a grass field has to be closed after a period of bad weather, an artificial turf field can still be played on. Not only our soccer players are happy about this, but also other athletes who can play lacrosse here, for example."

With construction costs of 920,000 euros, the set cost framework was adhered to, says a pleased Christof Nolda, the city's building official. "Although modern artificial turf playing fields are somewhat more expensive, they have the advantage that they can be used reliably and safely well into the transitional periods, thereby increasing the hall capacity." The 68-by-105-meter pitch also meets the DIN standards required by the German Football Association, so series matches can also be kicked off on the pitch, he added.

In recent years, the University of Kassel has already invested heavily in an attractive location for sports students with a new building for the Sports Institute, including a fitness studio, as well as a boat and seminar house on the Fulda River.

 

Background TASK:

TASK is the abbreviation for "Transfer- und Anwendungszentrum Sport in Kassel" (Transfer and Application Center for Sports in Kassel) and involves close cooperation between the city and the University of Kassel with the aim of transferring sports-related projects from scientific research work to practical application in sports.