Thousands of people took over the National Athletics Centre ahead of the World Championships

Amateur and professional athletes, enthusiasts, families, groups of friends, those seeking relaxation, and architecture lovers from all corners of the country arrived to take possession of Hungary's newest sports and leisure park – writes Index about the grand opening event of the National Athletics Centre on 17 June.

As a result of the large-scale construction project, the complex, which we have been reporting on continuously reported on, was opened to thousands of visitors during a family day, approximately two months before the World Championships, which began on 19 August.

World stars will be competing on these tracks in weeks

The spectacular sports and leisure centre, built by the consortium of ZÁÉV Építőipari Zrt. and Magyar Építő Zrt. consortium, the general contractor for the spectacular sports and leisure centre, the general public was able to test their athletic abilities on the special, specially coated running track during the running competitions organised on the opening day, on which world stars will also compete in the World Athletics Championships. They could also try out the fun athletic equipment that families will be able to enjoy in the park during the World Championships.

The World Athletics Championships are the third largest sporting event in the world. Once the event is hosted in the new complex in August, the public will be able to use it for recreational purposes, among other things.

In the stadium, the spectators could test themselves not only in the 100 m flat race, but also in the 2.3 and 4.5 km running races, which also covered the indoor track of the stadium and the entire recreation park.

Both professional and amateur athletes have a new home

"The unique facility, the worthy home of centuries-old Hungarian athletics, will also be a leisure and sports centre after the World Championships, open to all, where amateur athletes and those who want to relax can feel at home, and where they will return to in their everyday lives after the World Championships" - said Adam Schmidt, State Secretary for Sport and Government Commissioner for the World Championships.

The Minister of State also thanked the designer Marcel Ferencz, the consortium ZÁÉV-Magyar Építő and the workers involved in the implementation.

Balázs Németh, CEO of the Budapest 2023 Nonprofit Zrt., the organiser of the World Cup, said that they deliberately did not want to organise a traditional suit-clad handover, but a full-day festival for families and amateur athletes. As such, the stands were full and the atmosphere was already foreshadowing the international competition in a month's time.

The baton was passed

At the end of the opening ceremony, Peter Schriffert, the project director of the consortium and the ZÁÉV Zrt. project symbolically handed over a relay baton to Adám Schmidt, who immediately passed it on to Balázs Baji, former World Championships bronze medallist in hurdles and Boglárka Takács, the national record holder in the women's 100 and 200 metres. The latter thanked the brand new athletics centre on behalf of the athletes and sports fans and asked the Hungarian sports fans to come and cheer them on at the World Championships.

<The consortium was also represented at the event by Akos Balás, Deputy Project Director of Magyar Építő Zrt. and Peter Arvai, Project Manager of ZÁÉV Zrt. . Péte Schiffertr and the two construction industry executives also ran the opening race and were also present at the crossing of the finish line.

According to the organisers, 15,000 people attended the opening events. More than 5,000 people entered the running races, which were held over various distances in the leisure park and finished on the stadium's racecourse. Two thousand people were also curious to see the special building and were given guided tours of the new athletics facility.

Experts from several Hungarian companies participated in the implementation