New Indoor Pitch Opened
Today a new enclosed football indoor pitch has been opened on the territory of the Lokomotiv stadium. It's a truly milestone event, for the air dome that used to be there had been dated, both morally and technically.
The new structure meets all the criteria set by the necessity of rigorous practices of all the Lokomotiv teams, from youth to main squad. In cold weather the arena is warmed, so the teams can train all year long. The modern air conditioning system provides for a comfortable indoor temperature when it's hot outside.
With the home World Cup not long away, Moscow still lacks such sports infrastructure. In this respect, an indoor complex of a world standard opens new possibilities for holding training sessions and games.
The new turf will allow to save money, as it is 25% more energy-efficient than its predecessor.
FC Lokomotiv president Olga Smorodskaya, RFPL president Sergey Pryadkin, and RFPL CEO Sergey Cheban took part in the opening ceremony.
Olga Smorodskaya, FC Lokomotiv president:
'Dear friends! From the bottom of my heart, I congratulate you on this event. In the winter we're opening an indoor football park that our kids academy needs so badly.
The very name ‘Lokomotiv’ implies the will to lead, to be the first. We've been the champions of Russia several times, and won several Russian Cups. Lokomotiv was the first to open the club's museum in Russia, and today we're pioneering again: this structure is the first of its kind in Europe.
The arena was built in a record five months time. It was necessary to secure the most comfortable conditions for the work of the academy and for the continuous training, and we did it. The overpass allows the players get to the warm arena from their dressing-rooms, without going into the street.
I understand everyone's worried about the cost. There's no secret here: it's the cheapest
construction of this sort in Russia. Its cost is less than 200 million rubles.
We have two reasons to celebrate today: the International Centre for Sports Studies has listed our academy in their Top-100 worldwide. There're only two Russian club academies on the list - ours and that of Spartak. I congratulate you on this achievement. I would like to express my gratitude to all those involved, first of all to the President of the JSC RZD Vladimir Yakunin.’
Sergey Pryadkin, RFPL President:
‘First of all I’d like to say thank you to the president of Lokomotiv Olga Smorodskaya for this wonderful construction! Thank you very much for this pitch! Everything that is created in the football system should stem from kids football, from kids grounds. Such arenas are extremely important to Russia, considering our climate. I congratulate Lokomotiv on this event!’
But what an arena opening without a good game? Lokomotiv-2005 teams played the first match on the new ground. The young players demonstrated interesting and spectacular play. It was obvious they wanted to display in front of the high-profile guests and the press. Their parents and the Lokomotiv staff supported them on the stands.
The game ended 4:0, the winners’ captain was Grisha Loskov, wearing, of course, #10 shirt.
We hope that the new ground will foster many generations of the Russian players who will join the senior Lokomotiv squad and the national team!
