Melbourne Sports and Entertainment Precinct

Aerial view of the Melbourne Sports and Entertainment Precinct

The Melbourne Sports and Entertainment Precinct is a series of sports stadiums and venues, located in Melbourne, Victoria, in Australia. The precinct is situated around 3 km east of the Melbourne city centre, located in suburbs of Melbourne and Jolimont, near East Melbourne and Richmond.

It is considered to be Australia's "premier sports precinct",^[1] and regularly hosts some of the biggest domestic and international sporting events, including the AFL Grand Final (Australian rules football), Australian Open (tennis) and Boxing Day Test (cricket). The venues have also previously hosted the 1956 Summer Olympics (for which the Precinct served as the Olympic Park) and 2006 Commonwealth Games.^[1][2][3] For the 1956 Games, the venues hosted the track cycling, field hockey, football, and the aquatic events.^[3]

Sports venues and stadiums

The precinct comprises three areas: Olympic Park, Melbourne Park and Yarra Park. Olympic and Melbourne Parks are jointly managed, and Yarra Park is managed separately.^[2] The precinct is bordered to the north by Wellington Parade, to the east by Punt Road, to the south by the Yarra River, and to the west by Batman Avenue.

Olympic Park

This zone was known as 'Olympic Park' long before the Olympics were awarded to Melbourne, and was named for Olympic Park Stadium which was contained within this zone.^[2]

• AAMI Park (capacity 30,000; outdoor), the premier purpose-built venue for rectangular field sports (rugby league, rugby union and association football), and used for large outdoor stadium concerts.
• Westpac Centre (indoor), a training facility used by the Collingwood Football Club, but formerly a 7,000 capacity stadium used originally for swimming, then later for basketball.
• Olympic Park Oval, a public playing field & running track, now primarily used for training purposes by the Collingwood Football Club.
• Gosch's Paddock, a public playing field, previously used for training by the Collingwood Football Club, and now used by the Melbourne Football Club, Melbourne Storm Rugby League Club & Melbourne Victory FC for training purposes.

Former Venues

• Eastern Sportsground (aka No. 2 Oval)- Stadium that hosted the preliminary rounds of the field hockey competition of the 1956 Summer Olympics.^[2]
• Motordrome -a former speedway and Australian rules football ground. Demolished 1951 and replaced by Olympic Park Stadium.
• Olympic Park Stadium (capacity 18,500; outdoor), formerly the premier venue for track and field and rectangular field sports. The stadium was superseded for rectangular field sports by AAMI Park in 2011, and was demolished in 2011/12.
• Velodrome -A 4,400 seat, 333 metre long velodrome that was used for the track cycling events of the 1956 Olympics.This venue was located at on the northern/ Swan Street side of the Olympic Park ^[2]

Melbourne Park

• Rod Laver Arena (capacity 15,000; retractable roof), the premier venue for large indoor stadium concerts, and centre court for tennis in Melbourne Park. Also used in the past for basketball.
• Hisense Arena (capacity 10,500; retractable roof), the premier venue for basketball and netball, the second largest court for tennis in Melbourne Park, and a venue for indoor stadium concerts. Can be converted to a velodrome for major track cycling events.
• Margaret Court Arena (capacity 6,000; retractable roof), the third-largest tennis court in Melbourne Park.
• Melbourne Park Tennis Complex including three outdoor show courts, five indoor courts, and more than twenty outdoor courts, which are used for professional matches and available for public hire.
• Melbourne Park Function Centre

Yarra Park

• Melbourne Cricket Ground (capacity 100,000; outdoor), the premier venue for cricket and Australian rules football, and occasionally for other high-drawing field sports events.
• Punt Road Oval (capacity 15,000; outdoor), training facility for the Richmond Football Club, but formerly used for Australian rules football and premier grade cricket.
• National Sports Museum, located at the Melbourne Cricket Ground

Former Venues

• East Melbourne Cricket Ground, located in the north-western corner of Yarra Park, and used for Australian rules football and premier grade cricket. Demolished 1922 to make way for the Jolimont railyards.

Access

The precinct is located adjacent to both the Richmond and Jolimont railway stations; every train servicing the eastern side of Melbourne passes through one of these two stations. The precinct is also serviced by three tram routes from the city centre. Three footbridges are provided to cross the railway lines which divide the northern and southern halves of the precinct. The area in Yarra Park surrounding the Melbourne Cricket Ground is made available for ticketed car parking during major events in the precinct; free parking in the surrounding streets is available but limited.

References

External links

Media related to at Wikimedia Commons

• Melbourne & Olympic Parks official website
• Melbourne Sports Precinct at Austadiums
• Sports Precinct - Tourism Victoria website

Olympic venues in cycling 1896 Marathon (city), Neo Phaliron Velodrome 1900 Vélodrome de Vincennes 1904 Francis Field 1908 White City Stadium 1912 Liljeholmen, Mälaren 1920 Vélodrome d'Anvers Zuremborg 1924 Stade de Colombes, Vélodrome de Vincennes 1928 Amsterdam, Olympic Stadium 1932 Los Angeles Avenue, Pacific Coast Highway, Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Vineyard Avenue 1936 Avus Motor Road, BSV 92 Field & Stadium 1948 Herne Hill Velodrome, Windsor Great Park 1952 Käpylä, Maunula, Pakila, Velodrome 1956 Broadmeadows, Velodrome 1960 Olympic Velodrome, Via Cassia, Via Flaminia, Via Cristoforo Colombo, Via di Grottarossa 1964 Hachioji City, Hachioji Velodrome 1968 Agustín Melgar Olympic Velodrome, Satellite Circuit 1972 Bundesautobahn 96, Grünwald, Radstadion 1976 Mount Royal Park, Olympic Velodrome, Quebec Autoroute 40 1980 Krylatskoye Sports Complex Cycling Circuit, Krylatskoye Sports Complex Velodrome, Moscow-Minsk Highway 1984 Artesia Freeway, Olympic Velodrome, Streets of Mission Viejo 1988 Olympic Velodrome, Tongillo Road Course 1992 A-17 highway, Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Sant Sadurní Cycling Circuit, Velòdrom d'Horta 1996 Cycling road course, Stone Mountain Park Archery Center and Velodrome 2000 Centennial Parklands, Dunc Gray Velodrome, Western Sydney Parklands 2004 Athens Olympic Velodrome, Kotzia Square, Parnitha Olympic Mountain Bike Venue, Vouliagmeni Olympic Centre 2008 Laoshan Bicycle Moto Cross (BMX) Venue, Laoshan Mountain Bike Course, Laoshan Velodrome, Urban Road Cycling Course 2012 BMX Circuit, Hadleigh Farm, London Velodrome, Hampton Court Palace 2016 Barra Velodrome, Flamengo Park, Olympic BMX Center, Olympic Mountain Bike Park

Olympic venues in field hockey 1908: White City Stadium 1920: Olympisch Stadion 1928: Old Stadion 1932: Olympic Stadium 1936: Hockey Stadion (final), Hockey Stadion #2 1948: Empire Stadium (medal matches), Guinness Sports Club, Lyons' Sports Club, Polytechnic Sports Ground 1952: Velodrome 1956: Hockey Field, Melbourne Cricket Ground (final) 1960: Campo Tre Fontane, Olympic Velodrome (final), Stadio dei Marmi 1964: Komazawa Hockey Field 1968: Municipal Stadium 1972: Hockeyanlage 1976: Molson Stadium, McGill University 1980: Dynamo Central Stadium, Minor Arena; Young Pioneers Stadium (final) 1984: Weingart Stadium 1988: Seongnam Stadium 1992: Estadi Olímpic de Terrassa 1996: Clark Atlanta University Stadium, Morris Brown College Stadium (final) 2000: State Hockey Centre 2004: Olympic Hockey Centre 2008: Olympic Green Hockey Field 2012: Riverbank Arena 2016: Olympic Hockey Center