Brno plans to build an athletics hall on the campus for half a billion crowns

Brno - Brno is planning to construct an athletic hall on the university campus with estimated costs of nearly half a billion crowns. It could be completed in 2018, said Brno Mayor Petr Vokřál (ANO) to journalists today. According to him, the city will seek funding from the state, the athletics federation, and will also involve the South Moravian Region. The hall, which will accommodate 2000 spectators, should meet the criteria for hosting international athletic meetings.

The facility is to be built opposite the Faculty of Sports Studies at Masaryk University. The city has reached an agreement on the construction with the athletics federation and Masaryk University, with which it has signed a joint memorandum. "The city council today approved the investment plan for the construction of the hall and a budget of over 12 million crowns for project documentation. Now we need to secure co-financing, as Brno cannot invest in such a large project on its own," said the Mayor's deputy responsible for education and sports, Petr Hladík (KDU-ČSL).

Hladík will negotiate with his party colleague and the governor's deputy responsible for education and sports, Stanislav Juránek, about the region's involvement. According to Hladík, the city hopes to obtain about half of the required amount from other sources. He envisions receiving tens of millions of crowns from the region.

Juránek told ČTK that he will discuss the matter with the region's leadership. "I believe that an athletic hall is necessary. The only one meeting the parameters is in Vítkovice; there would be a second one in Brno. We will certainly consider the approach, however, I think that there is little time before the elections and the whole matter will move into the post-election period," Juránek added.

The hall for athletics will be a three-storey building with one underground floor and two above ground. About 1500 seats will be fixed, while the remaining 500 will be mobile, allowing the space to be used for other purposes. The building will feature a running track and all necessary stations for indoor championships, including areas for long jump, high jump, and pole vault.

The hall will primarily serve athletes, of whom there are about 4500 in the South Moravian Region according to Vokřál, but it will also be used by the neighboring Masaryk University. According to Hladík, there is a lack of covered athletic halls in southern Moravia, and athletes mainly have to use various gymnasiums for training, especially in the fall and winter.