Home Leisure Laval’s Claude-Ferragne Athletics Stadium now open in Auteuil

Laval’s Claude-Ferragne Athletics Stadium now open in Auteuil

Thursday will be remembered as an important date for Laval residents who are into competing in athletics or track-and-field sports.

Officials from the City of Laval, as well as from the Club d’athlétisme Dynamique de Laval, were on hand at the Odyssée-des-Jeunes school park in Auteuil for the official opening of the new $6.6 million Claude-Ferragne Athletics Stadium.

The new facility, which is open to athletes from Laval or any other resident who wants to train in a first-class setting, has been created by the city for the Jeux du Québec, part of which are scheduled to be taking place in Laval during the summer next year.

From the left: Lyne Carry, president of the Club d’Athlétisme Dynamique de Laval, Annie Potvin, head coach Club d’Athlétisme Dynamique de Laval, and Stéphane Boyer, vice-president of the Laval executive-committee are seen here on the surface of the running track at the new Claude-Ferragne Athletics Stadium in Auteuil.

Until next summer, according to the city, the facility is available to any resident who wishes to use it. It’s named after Claude Ferragne, a world-class high-jumper who took part as a Canadian athlete in the 1976 Montreal Olympics where he finished 12th in his sport. He won a gold medal at the 1978 Commonwealth Games. He coached and taught high-jump at Collège Ahuntsic.

Among other things, the stadium includes a 400-metre 8-lane running track, a 100-metre section with 10 lanes, two long-jump runways, several zones for pole-vault and high-jump, zones for disc, hammer, weight and javelin throw, a triple-jump corridor, a judges’ tower, four light towers and bleachers to accommodate up to 600 spectators.

“We can be very proud of these additional facilities, confirming Laval’s leadership with regards to sports,” said Mayor Marc Demers.