Among the cyclists of the Brno club TJ Favorit, there is currently no agreement on the sale of the velodrome

Brno – Representatives of cyclists from the TJ Favorit club will negotiate in the coming months about the possible sale of the Brno velodrome, on the site of which the city plans to build a football stadium in the future. First, an expert assessment of the property is necessary. The club also wants to know the conditions under which it would operate in the planned hall next to the swimming complex at Lužánky. Pavel Havránek, the club chairman, told ČTK today. However, the discussion is likely to be complicated, as there is no consensus among cyclists.

In September 2023, the city leadership informed that a new football stadium could be built where the current velodrome is located in the exhibition grounds. The city wants to buy it and provide cyclists with facilities in a new hall where athletes would also operate. City councillors approved an agreement with TJ Favorit Brno this January that would guarantee them the use. The city council member for sports, Tomáš Aberl (TOP 09), stated at that time that the club would have a privileged lease there.

The executive committee of Favorit will deal with the cooperation agreement on the new project. However, in the coming months, the club expects a somewhat more complicated decision regarding whether to part with its own property and move into a new modern hall, albeit as tenants. "The sale must be approved by a conference that we would convene after the appraisal is completed. Before that, we also want to be sure that we can finance our operations in the new hall," Havránek said. He noted that the club's property does not only include the velodrome, which still hosts international competitions, but also many other facilities.

The chairman is aware that some officials have concerns about operating as tenants. "For some, there is also great nostalgia; our velodrome may be one of the oldest in the world," he added. At the same time, he believes that a new hall is necessary for Czech cycling. Additionally, Brno would like a national cycling center to be established there. "That would be a win for the city," he remarked.

Jiří Zimovčák, the chairman of the speed cycling section, also perceives that a new sports facility would elevate the sport. However, he fears it would come at the expense of the club. "We would become tenants instead of owners, which I find objectionable. Every property owner would be crazy to leave something they own, where they can still earn from the lease," he thinks. Operating in someone else's facilities would, according to him, be financially unsustainable in the long term. "We still don’t know what conditions they will offer us. If they are not adequate, I believe we will not agree to them," he added.

Councillor Aberl also perceives concerns. "I completely understand them. The velodrome is their property. Some have justified concerns, and we are trying and will continue to try to dispel them," he stated on Facebook. He also added that, for example, cyclists from the Dukla Brno club, which does not have its own property, would view the situation differently. "For cycling, a new velodrome will be an incomparable improvement that the entire cycling community in the Czech Republic has been calling for for many years," he wrote. Among other things, he also stated that "Favorit is, was, and will be part of everything from the start." He reminded that replacing the existing velodrome is not a new idea. The magistrate reported that if the city signed a purchase agreement with the club before the new hall was built, the cyclists would use the existing velodrome free of charge.

The plan for a new football stadium instead of the velodrome is also related to the planned demolition of the dilapidated sports facility at Lužánky. The city is expected to select a contractor at the turn of spring and summer, with the work not starting any earlier than October due to the nesting of swallows.