| Address | Avenue Jacques Chastellain |
|---|---|
| Location | Rouen |
| Main venue | Ice rink |
| Other sports facilities | Aquatic center |
| Owner | Métropole Rouen Normandie[1] |
| Acreage | 9948 m2 (original)[2] |
Centre sportif Guy-Boissière (English: Guy Boissière Sports Center) is a multisports complex in Rouen, Seine-Maritime, France. It consists of an ice rink and a swimming pool.
The complex was originally known as Centre sportif du Docteur Duchêne, after Doctor Auguste Duchêne (1905 – 1967), a former deputy mayor and president of FC Rouen.[3] In 2006, it was renamed after Guy Boissière (1929 – 2005), a coach for the French national swimming team between 1960 and 1991, and France's 1986 All-Sports Coach of the Year.[4] It is also referred to as Piscine-patinoire de l'île Lacroix (English: Île Lacroix Pool and Ice Rink), after the Seine island it was built on.[5]
Its main ice surface, officially known as Patinoire Nathalie-Péchalat, is the home of ice hockey team Dragons de Rouen and the annual French Cup of synchronized skating.[6]
Ice rink
Patinoire du Centre sportif Guy-Boissière | |
 | |
| Executive suites | 14[11][12] |
|---|---|
| Capacity | 3,279[1] |
| Field size | 60 × 30 metre (Patinoire olympique Natalie-Péchalat) 56 × 26 metre (Patinoire Édith-Ballester) |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 14 January 1992[7] |
| Renovated | 2019–20 |
| Expanded | 2020 |
| Architect | Artefact Groupe 3 Architectes (1992 building)[7] Octant Architecture (2020 extension)[8] |
| Main contractors | Sogea (1992 building)[9] Eiffage (2020 extension)[10] |
| Tenants | |
| Dragons de Rouen (Ligue Magnus) (1992–present) | |
1971 version
The complex's original ice rink was designed by Atelier d'architecture et d'urbanisme de la Bretèque (ATAUB), a multinational firm with offices in metro Rouen.[2] It was inaugurated on 27 December 1971.[13] It replaced a temporary facility built nearby for a 1967 trade fair, and kept in operation by popular demand.[13] The new rink should have opened in late 1970, but burned down in an accidental fire before it was even finished, and had to be rebuilt.[13]
The venue was at the center of a minor controversy in 1986, when the IIHF selected it to host the B-Pool World Junior Championships despite its 56 × 26 metre playing surface, which is below international standards. The Italian Ice Sports Federation protested the decision—to no avail.[14]
While it only offered 920 seats,[9] reports from the building's later years indicate that around 3,000 people could be crammed inside for important games.[15] Following the Dragons' first national title in 1990, Rouen mayor Jean Lecanuet promised them a new home, to be erected on the same grounds as the original. The team played in Le Havre during the rebuild.[16]
1992 version
The new ice arena opened on 14 January 1992.[7] It is a dual ice facility, with the first surface measuring 60 × 30 metre and the second measuring 56 × 26 metre.[17] The building remained largely the same until 2019,[12] with the exception of a €2.35 million refresh in 2010, which was limited to the playing area and refrigeration system, and partially mandated by European environmental law.[18][19]
In 2012, a multipurpose venue called Kindarena was built in the eastern part of Rouen. However, the city wanted to avoid the costs associated with conversions between basketball and hockey, and it was not designed for the latter. Lower ranked basketball team Rouen Métropole SPO was designated as its main tenant, which was the source of some controversy.[20][21] Instead, the city and the Dragons started negotiations on an extension to the existing ice rink. The process was limited by the proximity of the river Seine, which necessitated the use of a slightly cantilevered design.[22]
The 700 m2 southern extension only allowed a modest seating capacity increase from 2,747 to 3,029,[8] with extra standing room for a total of 3,279 patrons.[1] But its main revenue driver was the addition of six executive suites (to the existing eight)[11] and a corporate lounge. The roof was also redone to accommodate a suspended video scoreboard, which the previous framework could not support.[12] The extension was accompanied by a remodel of the locker rooms and a general refurbishment of the venue. The project was supported by a broad majority in local political assemblies,[12] and carried out in 2019–20 at a cost of €9.2 million.[8]
In May 2021, the ice rink's Olympic surface took the name of former ice dancer and French Ice Sports Federation president Nathalie Péchalat, while the training surface took that of French synchronized skating pioneer Édith Ballester. The move was part of an initiative from the city's new political majority to primarily name or rename public buildings after women in order to improve female representation in the public space.[1]
Swimming pool
The aquatic center was the first part of the complex to open, and was inaugurated on 2 May 1970.[23] Like the original ice rink, it was designed by ATAUB.[2]
The indoor section has a distinctive concave roof and features an eight-lane, 25-metre indoor pool, as well as a teaching pool. The outdoor pool is 50 metre long and offers ten lanes.[24] It is home to the Vikings, a swim club founded in 1935, which has counted Stéphane Caron and Fabien Gilot among its members.[25]
The pool took the name of longtime Vikings and Team France coach Guy Boissière in May 2006, as did the entire sports center.[25] Later that year, it underwent a €2.7 million overhaul by Agence Lemarié, and an outdoor diving pool was closed and backfilled.[26]
Between 2001 and 2012, the center hosted a swim meet, the Arena Sprint, sponsored by the eponymous swimwear brand. The event attempted to innovate by integrating rock concerts, unusual race formats and apnea record attempts to the experience. It attracted stars like Alexander Popov and Alain Bernard. By 2013 however, an increasingly crowded international calendar had made such big names harder to come by, and the event was cancelled.[25]
References
- ^ a b c d Massin, Fabien (22 May 2021). "Patinoires de Rouen : ne les appelez plus Guy-Boissière, mais Nathalie-Péchalat et Édith-Ballester". actu.fr. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
- ^ a b c Projets des agences, Fonds: Dossiers d'oeuvres de la direction de l'Architecture et de l'Urbanisme, File: ATAUB, ID: DAU-ATAUB-71-2. Paris: Centre de documentation de l'IFA, Institut français d'architecture.
- ^ "Une drôle de configuration". paris-normandie.fr. 26 April 2022. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
- ^ City of Rouen Municipal Council (24 March 2006). Délibération 17-1 (Report). Retrieved 14 November 2022.
- ^ "Patinoire de l'île Lacroix". filmfrance.net. 1 March 2017. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
- ^ "La French Cup galvanise le public à la patinoire Guy-Boissière à Rouen". parie-normandie.fr. 7 February 2016. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
- ^ a b c "Patinoire Guy-Boissière". pss-archi.eu. 24 December 2020. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
- ^ a b c Delanoé, Régis (March 2019). "Rouen : bientôt une patinoire à hauteur du talent des hockeyeurs". Sportmag. No. 2 (Normandie ed.).
- ^ a b Europan 12 : Rouen, France (PDF) (Report). City of Rouen; Europan Europe. 2013.
- ^ "Un chantier d'envergure chronométré pour la patinoire Guy-Boissière de Rouen". paris-normandie.fr. 1 August 2019. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
- ^ a b Mateo, Pascal (14 March 2013). "Dans l'antre des Dragons". lepoint.fr. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
- ^ a b c d Delavaud, Aurélien (12 April 2017). "Rouen. La rénovation de la patinoire de l'Ile Lacroix de Rouen ne fait pas l'unanimité (Notre dossier)". tendanceouest.com. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
- ^ a b c Alric, Tristan (3 July 2020). "Rouen : les secrets de l'île Lacroix". hockeyhebdo.com. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
- ^ "Championnats en France". Le Quotidien. Chicoutimi. Agence France presse. 28 October 1986. p. 39.
- ^ "1/2 finale Amiens vs Rouen match 2". 19/20 (in French). FR3 Picardie. 4 March 1989. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
- ^ "La revanche du Dragon 1991–1992". rhe76.com. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
- ^ Massin, Fabien (25 December 2017). "Dans les coulisses de la patinoire Guy-Boissière sur l'île Lacroix, à Rouen". actu.fr. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
- ^ "Réparation et préparation" (in French). Archived from the original on 24 February 2011. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
- ^ Ouvry, Stéphanie (27 April 2010). "Rouen : On s'active sur et sous le glaçon". hockeyhebdo.com. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
- ^ Villy, Isabelle (18 May 2013). "Pourquoi l'élite mondiale du hockey ne joue pas à Rouen". actu.fr. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
- ^ Villy, Isabelle (30 May 2013). "Patinoire de Rouen : l'agrandissement, c'est pour quand ?". actu.fr. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
- ^ "Patinoire Guy-Boissière à Rouen : première phase des travaux dans les temps pour la rentrée". paris-normandie.fr. 1 September 2019. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
- ^ Alexandre, Alain; Jean-Yves, Jean-Yves (August 2003). "De Malaunay à l'île Lacroix" (PDF). Histoire(s) d'agglo. No. 3 (3rd ed.). Agglomération de Rouen Haute-Normandie.
- ^ "Piscine Guy-Boissière". rouen.fr. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
- ^ a b c "Dossier Sponsoring" (PDF) (Press release). Club des Vikings de Rouen. 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
- ^ City of Rouen Municipal Council (22 September 2006). Délibération 17-5 (Report). Retrieved 14 November 2022.
External links
- Patinoire olympique Nathalie-Péchalat – Official webpage (in French)
- Patinoire de loisirs Édith-Ballester – Official webpage (in French)
- Piscine Guy-Boissière – Official webpage (in French)
49°25′50″N 1°06′14″E / 49.4305°N 1.1040°E
This page was last edited on 15 June 2023, at 09:11