The Gate of Warriors in Pardubice will honor architect Řepa with a memorial plaque

Pardubice – A commemorative plaque honoring architects Karel and Miroslav Řepovy will be placed on the monumentally protected Gate of Athletes, which is part of the summer stadium in Pardubice. The first of them designed the sports facility. The sgrafitto plaque is being prepared by architect David Vávra with his daughter. This was stated by architect Jaromír Chmelík to ČTK. The Gate of Athletes is a functionalist building from the early 1930s that forms a monumental entrance to the stadium complex. It is complemented by original sculptural decorations in the form of figurative reliefs with sports motifs.

"We will not reveal the final appearance yet. The commemorative plaque will be made using the sgrafitto technique and will carry a personal message from David Vávra. His father was well acquainted with the younger of the two, Miroslav Řepa, so there is a deeper bond between the families,” said Chmelík.

The summer stadium in Pardubice is home to a first league football club. Chmelík's architectural firm worked on the design for the modernization of the sports facility, which was completed in 2023. It is now continuing with the restoration of the Gate of Athletes and the eastern stand. The building will gain a new function, and with the help of extensions, it will include a café, a fan shop, ticket offices, and storage spaces. Work began in January and is expected to be completed in the summer, according to Chmelík.

"Since January, the foundation remediation has been completed, and the construction of new structures has begun. However, a large part of the work is not yet visible because individual elements are being prepared off-site as prefabricated parts and other components that will later be assembled on-site," said Chmelík.

The Gate of Athletes is located on U Stadionu Street in Pardubice, where the eastern stand is also located, which is covered by a new spectator stand after the stadium's reconstruction. As a result, the eastern stand has lost its original purpose, and the architectural team has proposed a new use for it. "The original structure of the eastern stand will be preserved, even though it no longer meets today's static requirements. It will serve as a base for the new reinforced concrete structure made of prefabricated elements," said the architect.

From the back side facing the street, the wall of the stand could serve as a large screen for watching sports broadcasts. The staircase on the other side will remain and will lead to the lower areas of the stand, but it will not be accessible in the usual manner. Extensions will be created in the outer sections, where the city will place smaller businesses, such as a café or fan shop.

The city wanted to demolish the Gate of Athletes in the past, but thanks to a civic initiative, it gained the status of a cultural monument in 2018, and the city had to preserve it. Later, the town hall considered building a replica, which ultimately proved to be less advantageous.

"I was one of the processors of the proposal for its declaration as a cultural monument. Generally speaking, cultural monuments should not be demolished but rather protected, preserved, and reconstructed. As for replicas, there are cases where a damaged monument is replaced by a copy, which can also be protected as a monument. However, it is always better to preserve the original material and authentic architectural elements, which, in this case, we hope to achieve to the greatest possible extent," said building historian Bohdan Šeda.