The showgrounds don’t stand still
The tents are growing, carpets are being laid diligently and one stadium is even being roofed: Nothing is standing still at the showgrounds at the Aachener Soers at the moment. Which isn’t a surprise: Because this is where the FEI European Championships Aachen 2015 get underway in 18 days‘ time with the official Opening Ceremony, in the Main Stadium to be precise. The dressage arena in the Main Stadium, where the crowds will be able to marvel at piaffes, passage and pirouettes during the European Championships, was already in place in May for the World Equestrian Festival. The whole setting has taken form gradually over the course of the last few weeks.
The countless small pagoda tents, the impressive two-storey Champions‘ Circle, the accreditation tent on the Albert-Servais-Allee, a roofed training hall next to the Deutsche Bank Stadium or the Soers Tent with its spacious terrace. „It is the final spurt: By the beginning of the FEI European Championships on August 11th, everything has to be picobello and ready,“ said Carl Meulenbergh, President of the Aachen-Laurensberger Rennverein e. V. (ALRV), who, together with the ALRV Chairman Frank Kemperman and Ulrich Fischer from the Aachener Reitturnier GmbH invited guests to join them for a tour of the grounds. Today, work already began on the interior furnishing of the VIP tent, the „Champions‘ Circle“. And the wires are also glowing under the ground.
NetAachen, the official telecommunications service provider of the European Championships is responsible for making sure that among other things in a few days‘ time 250 telephone and 70 Internet connections, 250 TV connections, 500 kilometres of fibreglass lines and over 100 Wi-Fi access points are in good working order.
The FEI European Championships have also come up with some surprising novelties. For example, in addition to the classic caterers, there is going to be a „food mile“ for the first time ever. In a 35-metre long tent, different suppliers will be offering all types of culinary dishes at eight stands, from wok dishes to pasta and grilled food, through to crêpes and frozen yoghurt. „Exhibitors from all over the globe are found in the Village. Many regional exhibitors are among them, but they are also from the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Norway and even from Chile and Argentina,“ explained Fischer, who is responsible for the assembly.
The Deutsche Bank Stadium looks extremely unusual at the moment. Because there is a roof there, where one normally looks up to the open skies, a temporary roof to be precise. This construction comprising of aluminium and a double tarpaulin is not a permanent roof, it will be removed again after the European Championships. During the Championships the temporary roof, which was hoisted up using hydraulic cylinders and which is held in place by stable supports, will protect the reining and vaulting stars from the sun and the rain.
„Building it was a challenge, because normally several supports are needed for a roof of these dimensions. However, we wanted to impede the spectators‘ view as little as possible,“ explained Kemperman. A Dutch company that specialises in temporary buildings was commissioned with the building task. Now all that is missing is the special clay footing for the reiners, which is currently being stored in the Albert-Vahle Arena.
Anyone, who would like to experience the exceptional ambience at the FEI European Championships (August 11th-23rd) as well as top sport simultaneously, is quite welcome to do so. Tickets are still available for all days and all disciplines and they can be ordered here:
Ticket-Hotline: (0241) 917-1111
Source: Press release
