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Swansea SA1 Waterfront brings motorsport to the masses |
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Wednesday, 19 September 2007 |
Work is well underway on Wales Rally GB's service park location for
2007 - Swansea SA1's striking Waterfront complex. The relocation of the
service park, which was originally located out of town, will bring the
rally up close and personal to spectators, while offering them all the
facilities of a city location.
Traditionally, the service park is the competitive hub of Wales Rally
GB, with all cars returning at designated times, in between the
competitive stages of the rally, for team technicians to carry out that
all-important fine tuning. Big screens will provide spectators with the chance to watch teams
change tyres, wheels and refuel. Within comfortable walking distance
from the city's many hotels, restaurants and shopping areas the
waterfront complex is enormously spectator-friendly. Additionally, the
move will bring rally teams closer to their accommodation and provide
the media with permanent facilities.
"The reason for the move is simple - the benefits of a city centre
location are difficult to ignore," explained WRGB boss Andrew Coe.
"Swansea Council is creating a stunning waterside development that will
add a touch of glamour to the service park for 2007. Of course,
enabling rally fans to take full advantage of all of Swansea's
attractions will give the rally that extra bit of excitement and buzz.
But the main driving force behind the move is to offer a service park
that is more accessible to encourage those people who would perhaps not
usually think about travelling out of town to watch a stage to come and
see the stars of international motorsport right on their doorstep."
The use of the waterfront complex as Wales Rally GB's service park
location is expected to significantly boost Swansea's profile both
nationally and internationally, establishing it as an important city
location for future sporting events.
The attractive Swansea SA1 Waterfront site, which is transforming the
East docklands of Wales' second city, will be used for business,
housing and leisure as well as attracting sport to the city and will
require £200m of funding over the next 10-15 years. It is based on a 40
hectare prime waterfront site acquired from British ports. The
waterfront's impressive architecture and innovative image demonstrates
Swansea's position as a city of the 21st Century.
Chris Holley, Leader of Swansea County Council, said: "There is growing
confidence about Swansea and this really is Swansea's time to attract
new investment."
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