the complete Case History

World Athletics Championship
2014 Indoor World Championships in Athletics
IN SHORT
2014 Indoor World
Championships in Athletics
World Championships
Time period: March 7th to 9th,
2014
Athletes participating: 587
Participating countries: 141
Number disciplines: 26
Ergo Arena
Start of construction: 2007
Opening: August 2010
Capacity: 15,000 spectators
POLAND
The world of Sopot will be remembered, not only for the excellent results obtained by sports athletes, but also for another
peculiarity: the track which was installed on a substructure that was raised three meters.
A track never seen before
From March 7-9, 2014, the Polish city of Sopot hosted the fifteenth edition of the World Championships Indoor Athletics. The competitions were
held in the Ergo Arena, which for this occasion has undergone a profound transformation. "From a technical standpoint, the arena of Sopot is a
building designed for ice hockey, and thus has the pitch of the stands were adjusted, especially the front rows. This has created some concern by
the IAAF regarding the visibility of the track during the competition so it was decided to raise the track by three meters, "says Claudio Gonella,
the Export Division of Mondo Sports & Flooring. Organizers and technicians have had to then deal with and resolve critical issues and often very
specific.
An excellent coordination
To raise the track a three-meter high structure was built on which to place the frame of the Mondo portable Modultrack banked track, a
decision that has complicated the whole process of installation and saw the colloboration of the Mondo technical team to effectively coordinate the
whole project. "Our work has had to be combined with that for the realization of the first base structure. There were several meetings with the
organizing committee, the designers and our dealers to be able to meet the deadlines established at the time of the contract. We had to adapt to
this situation and there was a lot of coordination, "recalls Claudio Gonella. When the first half of the base structure was completed, the Mondo
materials were in place waiting to be installed. The installation of the track was started only when the property was completely closed and the
Mondo technical team could undertake the work. Everything happened with an excellent combination of timing between the operators involved.
"Our job has been to coordinate all the logistics, equipment and manpower to have all the material above the basic structure before it was closed.
Another challenge was to conceive the track respecting the IAAF, having considered that the installation was made on a substructure of metal
and wood, "adds Robert Sienkiewicz, Project Manager Tamex company, which partnered with Mondo in this project
A track for two arenas
The project that led to the creation of the athletics track of the Ergo Arena took almost three years to materialize, with some schedule changes that
occurred during construction. The indoor tracks, in fact, originally should have been two, one for the World Championships in Sopot and a fixed in
the city of Torun, also in Poland. About a year and a half before the start of the World Championships, the municipalities of Sopot and Torun had
signed a preliminary agreement between them, and the contract of all the work fell under the town of Torun. Being defined by procurement
contracts, the track designed for Torun was requested by the town of Sopot to be adapted and mounted in the Ergo Arena for the World indoor
athletics. "First we had to check the total size of the track, because in the city of Torun was already defined conformation, which also included some
construction works supplied. Verified that the track came into the hall in Sopot, we made a configuration change, shifting the position of the long
jump and the pole vault. The organizing committee has requested a shape as similar as possible to that of the track made in Istanbul on the
occasion of the 2012 World Indoor Athletics Championships, "recalls Claudio Gonella. The track of Sopot was dismantled the day after the
conclusion of the World Championships and will be reassembled by Mondo, with the supervision of the Polish Federation of Athletics, in the hall of
Torun, training center of the national level, by the end of April 2014. "The entire project is the result of a public tender for the arena of Torun. With
an agreement, but the city has entrusted the project to the city of Sopot. Our company, Tamex Obiekty Sportowe SA, won the public tender and
decided to pursue the project in cooperation with the Mondo, "says Robert Sienkiewicz.
Solution Mondo Modultrack
The structure of a portable banked track is normally not resting on a second underlying structure, but is placed on a substrate, in most cases
cement. In Sopot, the central area of ​the track did not presented any particular problems, while the oval, formed by a wooden platform and metal
raised in correspondence of the curves, on which was glued surface Mondo Super X, it has been installed on the 3 meter high base
structure. "The central area of ​the track has been installed directly on the floor to the substrate. For the outer ring, however, the frame of the
Modultrack was resting on the substructure. The two superimposed structures of wood and metal could cause problems, "said Claudio Gonella,"
but at the end of the competitions we received numerous praise, both for the stability of the track, and the absence of noise and vibration
during the competitions. " In addition to the track surfaces, Mondo provided the warm-up track and equipment, customized with the look of the
event.
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The stars of Sopot 2014
Coming to the sporting event, the medal of the Indoor World Championships in Athletics saw classified in first place the United States, with eight
gold medals, two silvers and two bronzes. Many were athletes who are highlighted in this edition of the world, from the US 4x400 relay (Clemons,
Verburg, Butler and Smith), who with a time of 3'01 "13 set a new world record. Other records, and the best seasonal performance, have been
made in other disciplines: the British Richard Kitty has established his own record in the 60 meters, running in 6 "49; in the 400 m, the Czech Pavel
Maslak won and set a new national record with 45 "24; in the 60 m hurdles, the American Omo Osaghae clocked the fastest time of the season
running 7"45; in the pole vault, the greek Kostadinos Filippidis made his best jump of the season with 5.80 m. Asian record instead for the Qatari
Mutaz Essa Barshim in the high jump, with the measurement of 2.83 m; national record for the Brazilian Mauro Vinicius da Silva in the long jump,
with the measure of 8.28 m. In the triple jump, the best performance of the season for the Russian Ljukman Adams, with 17.37 m; heptathlon,
best performance of the season for the American Ashton Eaton, with 6632 points. In the women, great performance by the Jamaican Shelly-Ann
Fraser-Pryce, who raced 60 meters in 6 "98, best performance of the season. Same result for the American Chanelle Price, who has raced in the
800 m in 2'00 "09. In the 60 m hurdles, yet US players, with Nia Ali who established his personal best with a time of 7 "80. In the pole vault, the
Cuban Yarisley Silva jumping 4.70 m has recorded its best performance of the year. In the high jump, gold for the Russian and Polish Kamila
Marija Kucina Licwinko, who jumped 2 m; for it is the Polish national record. In the shot put, another success for the New Zealander Valerie Adams,
who by throwing 20.67 meters to set the season record of discipline. In pentathlon, the Dutch Nadine Broersen set the season record of discipline
and the national record with 4830 points. Great performance also for the American 4x400 m relay, who set the season record with the time 3'24"83.
Focus
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Focus
Modultrack portable banked track
Since 1984, when it was presented at the World Memorial Hall in Kobe, Japan, Modultrack represents the state of the art in design and
construction of portable tracks. It is no coincidence, in fact, that the Mondo portable banked track has been chosen for the 2012 edition of the
IAAF World Indoor Championships in Istanbul, and on it you are competing, and will continue to run, most of the races major championships
around the world, including those of the NCAA in the United States. One of the characteristics for which the solution Modultrack is appreciated is
the possibility of being able to be assembled and disassembled in a few days, allowing, once disassembled, using the area occupied by the
track for the practice of other sports and activities. The strength of Modultrack is the ingenious mechanism locking jaws, which allows to block
the frame of the track in the right position without the use of screws or bolts. The mechanism is constituted by a jaw, welded to the truss, in
which a key is inserted, welded to the panel, which snaps into position once the panels are lifted to the correct height. Unlike other systems, which
are fixed with screws, the jaw mechanism ensures a constant clamping force between a panel to the other and installation after installation. It does
not matter, in fact, how many times the system is disassembled and reassembled, the length of the runway will not vary. Its modular structure,
without bolts, has been designed and sized so as to ensure ease of assembly, dismantling, transportation and storage. All steel
components of the removable frame are strategically reinforced and galvanized to minimize wear and damage during the phases of assembly,
disassembly and transport, and to provide unlimited protection in time against corrosion. All wooden parts are made of marine-grade plywood
and film-faced, to provide a high level of protection against moisture penetration. The Mondo removable curves can be customized to meet
customer needs, always ensuring athletic performance and safety. Mondo selects the radius of curvature, the angle of inclination, the horizontal
and vertical transitions between the straights and curves on the basis of the most advanced biomechanical studies, and based on its experience
unequaled in the field of high-level competitions. The result is a configuration that always ensures a smooth transition from straight to curved,
and that effectively counterbalances the centrifugal force on athletes that move along the curves in each lane and event. This helps athletes
achieve their best performance in complete safety.
Sportflex Super X 720
Made with the specific objective to significantly increase comfort without compromising athletic performance, the Mondo surface Super X 720
provides the optimal combination of energy return, comfort, safety, durability and for both the competition and training.
The secret of the surface Mondo Super X 720 lies in the structure of its bottom layer, derived from Mondotrack. Its geometric construction
honeycomb elongated, deformable in three dimensions, ensures an ideal combination of cushioning, maximum absorption and energy return, as
well as an excellent reaction time, linked to the type of thrust exerted by the athlete. At the same time, it helps to reduce the time interval to
complete the rolling of the foot between the 5th metatarsal and 1st metatarsal, while providing continuous support to the movement. In this way,
the time on the ground is minimized, the energy return is maximized and the reaction time is optimized, with a significant improvement in comfort
and athletic performance. In addition, due to the absorption of shocks in both vertical and horizontal directions, reduces fatigue and trauma to the
foot.
The top layer rubber-based elasticity ensures unparalleled and high resistance to nails. Grip and traction are excellent, as well as the flow of water,
thanks to the embossing non-reflective.
Thanks to the vulcanization process, between the two layers that make up the surface is a molecular bond that ensures the realization of a
continuous material, without joints.
Another important feature of Mondo Super X 720 is the resistance to oxidation (Oxidation Induction Time) thanks to an innovative formulation has
increased on average by 200%. This results in an increase in resistance to changes caused by weather conditions and provides superior protection
against climate change and the growing risk of extreme weather conditions.
Mondo Super X 720 is a perfect example of Mondo's commitment to sustainability, the surface has up to 42% recycled post-consumer and
post-industrial content, and 6% of rapidly renewable materials.
The product is also available in a version specifically for indoor applications, with VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) in accordance with the most
stringent European requirements in the area of ​commercial flooring. The indoor version of Mondo Super X 720 is also classified according to the
system cfl Euroclass defining the optimum security measures in case of fire, including the minimal toxicity.
Mondo Super X 720, a superior training
Mondo Super X 720 is prefabricated, produced in a controlled environment is not compromised by environmental conditions: this guarantees
uniform technical characteristics and thickness over the entire surface, resulting in a dynamic response in the absence of constant and variable
points on the track that could affect negatively the pace of the race, protecting the athlete from the risk of fatigue or injury. The track provides full
control over the length of the stride, the race pace and balance, so that the athletes get the most out of their training sessions, with the security of
being able to replicate the same results during the competition
The mascot of Sopot 2014 a seagull named Sopotek. He is dressed in the colors of the city flag: yellow and blue. It was designed by the University
of Physical Education and Sport in Sopot and its motto is "the sky is the limit."
The decision to raise the three-meter running track, led experimenting some special situations, such as the entrance and exit of the athletes
directly from under the track, with two flights of stairs positioned on the long sides.
At 39 American Bernard Lagat, winning silver in 3000, it became the oldest to the podium in the event's history.
The logo of Sopot in 2014 comprises three elements: in the foreground you see a pole-vaulter, with a view of Sopot in the background with a lantern
of the shipyard in the city. In the logo there are also references to the beach, with warm colors that symbolize the sand and the sun.
Ergo Arena
La Ergo Arena è un palazzetto dello sport polifunzionale adatto anche ad ospitare spettacoli e concerti. È stato inaugurato nell’agosto del 2010, e
da allora al suo interno si sono disputate gare di diverse discipline sportive: pallavolo, pallacanestro, pallamano, tennis, tennis da tavolo,
equitazione, sport da combattimento e hockey su ghiaccio. Nel 2014, per la prima volta ha ospitato gare di atletica leggera in occasione dei
Campionati mondiali di atletica leggera indoor.
Mondo per l’allenamento
La velocità delle piste Mondo è ampiamente dimostrata. I test hanno evidenziato che su queste superfici, gli atleti hanno un passo più lungo
rispetto alle prestazioni misurate sui prodotti della concorrenza. Gli atleti che competono, ma non si allenano sulle nostre piste, possono soffrire di
stiramenti muscolari e, nei salti e nella corsa a ostacoli, discipline in cui è richiesto un numero preciso di passi per raggiungere un punto specifico,
è possibile sbagliare conteggio. Per gli atleti vale la pena, quindi, prendere confidenza con gli effetti delle superfici Mondo prima delle competizioni.
L’ideale sarebbe sfruttarle regolarmente già durante gli allenamenti, in questo modo i record personali raggiungibili saranno inevitabili.
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Work
In
Progress
Slideshow
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