Sports park connects generations

Surprisingly green, Mülheim an der Ruhr presents itself - incidentally, the first mining-free city in the Ruhr area. Unsightly industrial wastelands have turned into green spaces. The city invests heavily to entice both young and old sports enthusiasts outdoors. The focus is not solely on traditional disciplines. The annual Dragon Boat Festival, a fun sports regatta on the Ruhr, is widely celebrated. Currently, the Styrum Sports Park is being developed, a family- and generation-friendly sports and leisure park. The centerpiece of the facility: the Tengelmann Arena, a multifunctional open-air hall that can be used in a variety of ways all year round. The modern sports park replaces a dilapidated ash field. From the beginning, the planning involved adjacent clubs, institutions, residents, as well as athletes, students, and kindergarten children. The result is a sports park and experience space offering diverse movement and leisure activities for all generations. The detailed planning and implementation of the facility were managed by the planning office DTP Landschaftsarchitekten. The first construction phase was completed in 2019, and the entire sports park was to be finalised in 2021 with a second construction phase. At the centre of the Styrum Sports Park stands a multifunctional open-air hall constructed by McArena. The multifunctional and weather-independent year-round usability and high cost-effectiveness were key factors in selecting this type of hall. No heating system is required, and lighting is provided by LED floodlights. Additionally, a photovoltaic system on the roof generates around 100 kWp of energy, producing more energy than the Styrum Sports Park consumes.Regarding sustainability, the robust and low-maintenance sports field is convincing. The installed Poligras Mega CoolPlus is a full artificial turf system particularly suitable for multifunctional use, including football. Its surface is dense and even, ensuring no unintended changes in ball direction. The Polytan CoolPlus function prevents the turf from heating up too quickly in summer. Directly adjacent to the Tengelmann Arena is a partially covered outdoor sports area. Here, our all-around surface PolyPlay S in medium grey was laid. The seamless surface was installed on-site by our specialists: a 25 mm thick elastic layer made of recycled rubber materials was covered with a 10 mm thick EPDM granulate layer. This construction guarantees consistent values for damping and deformation. PolyPlay S is also slip-resistant and water-permeable, allowing the field to dry quickly and be used year-round as an all-weather surface. In the calisthenics area, we installed the colour-matched impact protection flooring PolyPlay FS 2.5. The shock-damping layer, with a total thickness of 132 mm, is optimally adjusted to the fall height.The second construction phase has since been completed and was supported by funding from the 2018 "Investment Pact for Social Integration in Neighbourhoods" by the state and federal government. There are now 23 distinct offerings that excite athletes of all ages in Styrum. For children and teenagers, features include balancing paths, asphalt waves, a hill ascent, and a parkour area. Older athletes also have numerous options: there’s a throw and jump area, a 100-meter and 500-meter running track, two beach volleyball courts, a streetball court, an interactive goal wall, a fitness and gymnastics area with a calisthenics unit and fitness container, as well as two pétanque courts.On the 100-meter sprint track and the long jump area, Rekortan M was used, our professional sports surface for athletics stadiums, school sports facilities, and competition tracks. The waterproof poured surface stands out with excellent acceleration and high resilience. The small football field, or kickabout area, was renewed with Rekortan M RT – this re-topping process by Polytan technically and visually restores worn artificial surfaces. It is an extremely cost-effective solution for refurbishing sports facilities, as the existing elastic substrates are retained and sustainably reused, avoiding disposal costs.In addition to numerous sports options, the Styrum Sports Park offers visitors and guests plenty of opportunities for interaction and exchange. This includes all kinds of seating groups, mobile chairs, stool benches, and concrete steps and walls. Martina Ellerwald, Head of Mülheim Sports Service: "The Styrum Sports Park is much more than just a sports venue. It is a social institution and a place for people in Styrum to come together."On April 30, 2022, the Styrum Sports Park was ceremoniously opened and has since been considered the highlight of the Mülheim district.More information about our partner McArena and the project in Mülheim an der Ruhr can also be found at: https://mcarena.de/b2b/referenzen/freilufthalle-sportpark-styrum