This year, work started within the scope of the project on the ski jumping towers, which were built for the 2011 World Universiade Winter Games in Erzurum and most recently hosted the competitions at the 2017 European Youth Olympic Festival (EYOF).
The large and normal ramps of the jumping towers, which are the first and only in Türkiye, located on Kiremitlik Hill in Palandöken district, were changed and a special cooling system was installed to provide icing in summer and winter.
Athletes will be able to continue their training and organize events for 12 months in the towers, which will be among the world’s leading jumping towers with their new technology.
Youth and Sports Provincial Director Levent Çakmur said that the repair of the jumping towers continues.
Stating that the wooden part will be completed and the track will be put into service as of the summer, Çakmur said, “It will be prepared for our athletes and young people who will prepare for the Olympics.” he said.
“This repair was made by taking the best examples in the world.” Citing the latest work on the ramps used since the 2011 World Universiade Winter Games, Çakmur continued as follows:
“With this new technology, we see that both summer and winter channels have become ready for jumpers. This has made us very comfortable in terms of labor and time. Our athletes will now ice their own channels with a new technology, without waiting for the weather to get cold or minus in winter. It is not a ramp that is affected by wind or weather conditions, the new technology has now turned it into a system that ices its own channel, allowing our athletes to train more effectively. It is the best in the world. This repair was made by taking samples. Hopefully, once it is at the service of our athletes, it will reach the place it deserves in Türkiye. Previously, there were 2 canals, a separate irrigation system for our jumpers in summer and a separate icing system in winter. It was causing us a lot of effort in terms of labor and time. “Now, without the need for this, our athletes will train faster, more practically, and without wasting time, with water in the summer and ice in the winter.”
Pointing out that the system will also be beneficial in terms of electricity, water, icing and labor, Çakmur said, “We were trying to cool this place and prepare that ramp at minus 15. Now, since it will automatically freeze, it will benefit us greatly in terms of labor, time and cost. Many of the exemplary facilities have been integrated here and our facility is being made the most elite facility both in terms of technology and the practices of other international federations.” he said.
Stating that they require an International Ski Federation (FIS) approved document for the facility, Çakmur said:
“Our company is working together with the international federation delegate and will receive the FIS approval and deliver it to us. The work continues under the control of the international delegation and is designed to hold international competitions. The part that makes us most happy is that this facility will be open to international competitions for 12 months. Once it becomes technologically up-to-date and approved by the international federation, it will now be able to host both training and international competitions in the summer.”
International standardsGerman company owner Peter Riedel stated that they came to Erzurum 1.5 years ago after meeting national skier Fatih Arda İpcioğlu and prepared a project as a result of feasibility studies.
Stating that they completed the work by modernizing 2 ramps in 33 days, Riedel said, “The inrun (jump starting system) systems were made ready for first-quality use and we re-established everything.” he said.
Riedel continued:
“The inrun systems we have built here are now at international standards, as in Oslo and Innsbruck. Such places are already centers that organize such events. We built inruns in accordance with the standards in those centers here. With the work, the jump towers in Erzurum have reached international standards. There are two channels in this inrun system. One of them is a cooled channel, the channel used in winter, and there are special coolers in it. And in the summer version, there is special water in the covered area. There is a floor furnished with special porcelain pieces that will create a slippery surface on which he can work. This system can be easily used in the summer season starting from the beginning of June. Because considering that we are at an altitude of 2 thousand, cold inrun systems can be used both in winter and summer. “With the summer version we have installed, these channels can be skipped in the summer as well.”
Talking about the contributions of the system, Riedel concluded his words as follows:
“The installation of this system here will make a great contribution to the region. This is a jumping tower at an altitude of 2 thousand and it constitutes an important point for other athletes who will come here to train. International organizations can be held. Because you now have jumping ramps at international standards. Erzurum is located at a central point in terms of winter sports, and has the opportunity and climate where all kinds of winter sports can be implemented. Therefore, this is a feature that may become a favorite of Türkiye in the future. With these systems so far “Arda and his team, who trained in Slovenia, now have the opportunity to train at home after this system, and this is actually a huge step for Turkish sports.”