Sugathadasa Stadium

Sugathadasa Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is currently used for football, rugby union, and athletics. The stadium holds 25,000 people and has an on-site hotel.

Sugathadasa Stadium
සුගතදාස ක්‍රිඩාංගණය
சுகததாஸ விளையாட்டரங்கம்
Sugathadasa Stadium
Location within Colombo Municipality
LocationColombo, Sri Lanka
Coordinates6°56′53″N 79°52′07″E
OwnerSugathadasa National Sports Complex Authority [1]
Capacity25,000[2]
SurfaceGrass (Desso), Track (Mondo)
Construction
Broke ground16 January 1957 (1957-01-16)
Opened16 December 1962 (1962-12-16)
Tenants
Colombo FC
Renown SC
Sri Lanka national rugby union team
Sri Lanka national football team
Colombo Lions

History

The concept of an outdoor sporting stadium was initially raised by V. A. Sugathadasa, the Mayor of Colombo (1956–57, 1963–65), the country's first Minister of Sports (1966–70) and Chairman of the National Olympic and Commonwealth Games Committee.[3] Construction of the stadium commenced on 16 January 1957 and was completed on 16 December 1962.[4][5] The stadium was named after Sugathadasa, as he donated the land it was built on.[6]

In 1991, an indoor stadium was constructed on the site by the Mitsui Company for the 1991 South Asian Games.

Stadium usage

The 1991 and 2006 South Asian Games were held in Sugathadasa Stadium. It also hosted the majority of matches for the 2010 AFC Challenge Cup. The 2010 IIFA Awards took place here. In 2012, the stadium was home to the Elite Football League of India. In 2002 it hosted the Asian Athletics Championships.

Track

The track was first laid in around 1989 and relaid again 1996. In 2002 Rekortan track was laid, which was then relaid in 2012 by the Ministry of Sports however the track failed within two years and currently Sri Lankan athletes are lacking an international track to practice for international meets.[7][8] In 2017 the Minister of Sports, Dayasiri Jayasekara, announced the track would be relaid and was expected to open back to athletes in December 2017.[9]

References
  1. "SUGATHADASA NATIONAL SPORTS COMPLEX AUTHORITY". www.sportsmin.gov.lk. Archived from the original on 2015-10-23. Retrieved 2015-10-10.
  2. http://www.worldstadiums.com/asia/countries/sri_lanka.shtml
  3. Perera, S. S. (1999). The Janashakthi Book of Sri Lanka Cricket, 1832-1996. Janashakthi Insurance. p. 593.
  4. "History of Sugathadasa National Sports Complex Authority". Ministry of Sports. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
  5. Corea, Ishvari (1988). Glimpses of Colombo. Colombo Municipal Council. p. 191.
  6. "The Daily Star Web Edition Vol. 5 Num 789". archive.thedailystar.net. Retrieved 2020-06-28.
  7. "Sugathadasa Stadium's synthetic track may not be certified by IAAF - Sri Lanka News". Sri Lanka News. 2013-11-10. Retrieved 2018-02-19.
  8. "Sugathadasa Indoor Stadium Has Gone To Dogs". The Sunday Leader. 2013-11-10. Retrieved 2018-02-19.
  9. http://www.dailynews.lk/2017/09/14/sports/128191/sugathadasa-track-re-laying-commences
Preceded by
Bung Karno Stadium
Jakarta		 Asian Athletics Championships
Venue
2002		 Succeeded by
Rizal Memorial Stadium
Manila


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