Edmonton city council approves world class indoor velodrome
Facility will be able to host world championships or Commonwealth Games
It may have taken ten years, but Edmonton is finally getting an indoor velodrome. According to a report in the CBC, city council has voted in favour of adding a velodrome to the proposed Coronation Community Recreation Centre.
The current price tag for the rec centre is $153 million, and there will be an additional cost of $46 million for the indoor track. The velodrome will be located in the Woodcroft neighbourhood in Edmonton. The secretary treasurer of the Argyll Velodrome Association, Dave Embury said that the new velodrome will be an incredible resource for Alberta’s cycling community. “Our little outdoor facility has created two gold medallists. And just imagine forward how much more we can do with an indoor facility, open all year round,” Embury said on CBC during Edmonton Am. “It’s unlimited.”
Kelsey Mitchell wins gold on the last day of the Tokyo 2021 Olympic Games
There is currently an outdoor track in southeast Edmonton but it is in rough condition and not up to standards anymore for high level competition, he said.
The Coronation recreation centre will also include a fitness centre, a swimming pool and running track. “It’ll now be a swim-bike-run facility and so the triathlon organization, our partners, will also have a home,” Embury said. The facility will also be able to be used for events like the Commonwealth Games or World Championships.
There is already a Category 2 velodrome in Milton, the Mattamy Athletic Centre, and indoor velodrome in Bromont is slated to be done by next year. Perhaps it’s time for Canada to launch its own champions league once there are three world class tracks here?
