Work Begins On 2012 Canoeing Venue
Construction work has begun on the White Water Canoe Centre in Broxbourne for the London 2012 Games, meaning the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has now delivered all of the milestones it set out last summer.
The Broxbourne venue is due for completion ahead of 2012, delivering an early legacy of community use and training facilities for people of all abilities before the Games begin.
The start of construction work on the Broxbourne White Water Canoe Centre means the ODA has now delivered all of ‘the big build: foundations’ milestones it set out last summer.
A new document has been released outlining how the ODA has met all, and exceeded some, of the ten milestones set last summer.
The White Water Canoe Centre in Broxbourne, Hertfordshire will host the canoe slalom events during the Olympic Games. After the Games, the venue will be developed to become a sporting and leisure facility for canoeing and white-water rafting, as well as a major competition and training venue for elite events.
The Centre will be owned, funded and managed by Lee Valley Regional Park Authority, who own the site. The venue will feature an intermediate course alongside the Olympic course, allowing the Centre to create an inclusive and comprehensive sports development programme in legacy from novice paddler through to elite competitors.
The White Water Canoe Centre is being built in Broxbourne on part of the River Lee Country Park, close to Waltham Cross station. It is being built on a 10 hectare site, covering an area the equivalent of 25 full-size football pitches.
The venue will include an Olympic standard 300m competition course, a 160m intermediate/training course, a Finish Lake, a facility building and pumping house, and a Landscaping works.
Land formation works are now underway on the Broxbourne site involving the placement and compaction of fill material to form the canoe course embankments and the landscaped features of the venue.
The land formation works will be completed by the Autumn when work will then start to create the foundations of the Olympic starting pool and the venue facility building.
The construction of the White Water Canoe Centre is due to be completed for Games training and testing in 2010-11 with some public use in 2011.
During the Games, temporary seating will be installed around the venue for spectators. After the Games, the spectator seating will be removed, and the venue will be developed into the Broxbourne White Water Canoe Centre, creating a major leisure attraction for canoeing and white water rafting as well as a venue for future international competition.
