Organisers start filling up pools at «Kazan Arena» stadium and water polo arena

Representatives of republican media outlets visited today two Kazan 2015 venues in order to look at the final preparation stage for the 16th FINA World Championships. During the media tour, reporters visited the Kazan Arena Stadium and Water Polo Arena and asked questions to Director General of the Executive Directorate for Sports Projects, Azat Kadyrov, and Secretary General of the Directorate, Ranko Tepavcevic.

As of today, more than 120,000 tickets have already been sold for the World Championships. Little less than 30% of tickets were purchased by aquatic sports fans from abroad. There are still tickets available for almost all events, as well as the Pilgrim shows, but Director General of the Executive Directorate for Sports Projects, Azat Kadyrov, advised not to leave the purchase of tickets until the last minute. 

“We have 29 days left to go until the start of the mega sporting event - the 16th FINA World Championships. As you can see, work has started at the Kazan Arena Stadium on filling the main pool with water. Before that the pool has successfully passed the checking procedure. In several days it will obtain its final appearance in which it will emerge in front of athletes, spectators and TV viewers. Preparation of all venues has entered the home stretch. All goes according to the plan, and there are no reasons for concern. We work in close cooperation with all federations and receive various inspection visits every other day and the frequency of these visits only increases. For example, our colleagues who provide TV broadcasts are on a visit to Kazan these days. I can assure you that currently there are no unresolved issues in the build-up to the event,” Director General of the Executive Directorate for Sports Projects, Azat Kadyrov, said to the reporters.

The same pools that are normally used at the Olympic Games will be used at the World Championships. They are provided by Myrtha Pools, FINA’s long-term partner. Not only did the company deliver pool prefabricated structures but it is also involved in assembly works. The pools are made of stainless steel and are coated with polyvinyl chloride for watertight integrity. Myrtha Pools' workers have already set up the structures and some days ago started filling the main pool with water.

“The entire water treatment procedure is aimed at bringing the pool water into compliance with the sanitary regulations adopted in Russia. Water quality will fully meet the requirements for permanently installed pools. Water will be pumped into the pools via a sophisticated technological equipment that will be placed under the spectator stands. That is also where operational sensors are set up and Internet-based water quality monitoring is performed,” Azat Kadyrov said.

Myrtha Pools’ technical delegate who was also present at the media tour elaborated on the water treatment procedure implemented at the Kazan Arena Stadium.

“The pool is made of stainless steel panels covered with PVC membrane. Filtration is going all around the pool. The water, when it is on the top of the pool, goes inside the gutter and then goes back to the filtration system. From the filtration system it goes to the balance tank, which cleans the water and sends it back to the pool. I can assure you that this water will be purer than regular tapwater. Not only can you swim in this water but you can also drink it if you want. Chlorine? Each pool has its own dose of chlorine. Here it is minimised. And considering that it’s an outdoor venue, there won’t be any smell of chlorine at all,” Giuseppe Guarente, Myrtha Pools’ technical delegate, said to the reporters.

Azat Kadyrov confirmed that the Kazan Arena Stadium is 75% ready to host the upcoming sporting event. Temporary stands and a canopy have already been assembled and installed; press facilities have also been prepared. During the competitions, the stadium will be able to accommodate 12,000 people, 8,000 of which will be spectators.   

After the tour of the Kazan Arena Stadium, the reporters headed to the Water Polo Arena, which is located nearby. Since it was the first time ever the media were visiting the venue, Secretary General of the Executive Directorate for Sports Projects Ranko Tepavcevic took the reporters on a short tour to make them familiar with the Water Polo Arena. 

“The Water Polo Arena is a temporary venue. The facility will be able to seat 3,700 spectators, including commentators’positions. It is located close to the Aquatics Palace. It’s at the Aquatics Palace where water polo teams’ entire preparatory and training process will take place ahead of the matches. If you remember, just a couple of weeks ago there were parking lots here where stands for the Water Polo Arena are currently being installed. But works are done really promptly. And today we have already started to fill the pool with water. All we need to do now is to construct a canopy above spectator stands,” the Secretary General of the Executive Directorate for Sports Projects informed.

The spectator stands have already been installed; the contractors have only to set up temporary canopies. They are intended to cover only the stands though; the pool itself will be under the open sky.  

“Decisions to cancel or postpone competitions are made by FINA’s special committee. Based on my experience, I can say that our outdoor venue is not the first to host high-profile international matches. The same type of pool was used at the previous World Championships in Bareclona; same practices are used at a club level. Surely, if there’s a thunderstorm matches will be cancelled, but I can assure you that it will not strongly affect the competition schedule,” Ranko Tepavcevic said to the reporters.

Weather conditions will definitely not affect the competition schedule. Water polo training sessions will take place in a practice pool at the Aquatics Palace which will be within walking distance of the main pool. 

“The Aquatics Palace is one of the most multifunctional venues. Prior to the start of competitions, we will divide it into venues for four sports. And during the World Championships, we will distribute athletes across different pools according to the schedule. As to the central pool, it will be allocated to swimmers in the morning, to divers in the afternoon, and diving training sessions in the evening. One more pool will be fully dedicated to water polo practices. And after diving medal events conclude, the entire venue will be allocated to water polo teams,”  the Secretary General concluded.