Changlimithang Stadium

Changlimithang Stadium
Changlimithang Stadium
Location of Changlimithang within Bhutan
Address Changlimithang, Chang Lam, Thimphu, Bhutan
Location Thimphu, Bhutan
Coordinates 27°28′17.1″N 89°38′27.8″E / 27.471417°N 89.641056°E / 27.471417; 89.641056
Capacity 25,000[1]
Field size 122 x 76 yards
(102.4m x 69.4m)
Construction
Broke ground 1974
Opened 1974
Renovated 2007–08
Expanded 2007–08
Tenants
Bhutan national football team
Bhutan women's national football team
Druk Pol
Druk Star
Druk United
Dzongree
Thimpu City
Yeedzin

Changlimithang Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Thimphu, Bhutan, which serves as the National Stadium. It is predominantly used for football matches and is the home of both the Bhutan national football team and a number of Thimphu-based football clubs who play in both the A-Division and the National League. In addition to football, the stadium also regularly plays host to major archery tournaments, the national sport of Bhutan. The stadium was initially constructed in 1974 for the coronation of the fourth Druk Gyalpo Jigme Singye Wangchuck, but was completely refurbished in 2007 in advance of the coronation of the fifth Druk Gyalpo Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck. Floodlighting was added to the football pitch in 2009 and an artificial pitch was laid in 2012 to coincide with the start of the first season of the National League.

Original stadium

Changlimithang is built on the site of a decisive battle in Bhutan's history, fought in 1885, which established the supremacy of Ugyen Wangchuk, his coronation as the first Druk Gyalpo and led to the unification of Bhutan following a series of civil wars and rebellions between 1882 and 1885.[2][3] Construction for the original stadium was completed in 1974 in time for the coronation of the fourth Druk Gyaplo, Jigme Singye Wangchuk and at that time the whole park covered an area of approximately 11 hectares, with seating for around 10,000 people.[3] As well as taking on the role of national stadium and being the home to the Bhutan national football team and national archery competitions, the stadium also provided facilities for squash, billiards and tennis in addition to being the headquarters of the Bhutan Olympic Committee.[3]

Refurbishment

The stadium was completely refurbished and reopened in 2008 for the dual celebration of the coronation of the fifth Druk Gyalpo Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk and the centenary of the establishment of the House of Wangchuk and the reunification of the country.[4] Redevelopment plans were drawn up by the Ministry of Works and Human Settlement in conjunction with the National Steering Committee for the Coronation Celebrations.[4] the old stand which consisted of 6 rows of seating with a capacity of around 10,000 was completely demolished to be replaced with a stand consisting of twenty one rows of seating for 30,000 people.[4] This stand would provide substantial seating not just around the area of the football pitch, but also down alongside the archery range.[4] In order to complete this construction, the squash court and basketball court were demolished, although the increased size of the stand allowed for the creation of areas for table tennis and shooting as well as facilities for bathing and changing underneath the seating area.[4] In addition to changes to the sporting venues within the facility, the Olympic association were provided with new offices, the royal pavilion was expanded to increase guest capacity and the banqueting hall was renovated.[4] Two new parks were also created on the land surrounding the facility: one between the car park and the river and another nearer the archery range were laid out at a cost of Nu 2,000,000.[4] These renovations took two years and cost a total of Nu 230,000,000.[2] The newly refurbished stadium was opened by Heir presumptive Prince Dasho Jigyel Ugyen Wangchuck.[2]

Further enhancements were made to the football pitch in 2011, when floodlighting was added.[5] There had been a desire to include floodlighting at the stadium since 2006, but this had not been achieved due to the high cost of installation.[5] A trip to Bhutan by Tata Group owner Ratan Tata led to an agreement between Tata Power, Druk Green and the Bhutan Olympic Committee to install floodlighting, with Tata bearing the cost of installation as an act of corporate social responsibility.[4] The total cost of installing the floodlighting was Rs 13,230,000.[4]

Modern usage

As well as continuing to hold sporting events, the facility has been utilised for wider public occasions including the Wedding of Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and Jetsun Pema.[6] Despite the increase in capacity a few years earlier, the stadium was unable to hold all of the people who wished to attend the occasion.[6]

Following the wedding, more improvements were made to the football pitch, with the grass field being replaced with an artificial surface to improve the performance of the players and add additional durability to the facility as a whole.[7] Historically, it had been very difficult to maintain the ground to an acceptable standard, with an uneven, rain-soaked pitch leading to mocking calls from spectators in the mid-1990s.[8]

Financial support from FIFA enabled the project to go ahead and work started at the ground in March 2012 with the artificial turf being laid in November and finished in December the same year.[7] As part of a two-day visit to Bhutan in March 2012, FIFA president Sepp Blatter performed the ground-breaking ceremony for the new pitch, promising that FIFA would support Bhutanese football.[9] However there were delays in completing the upgrade as cold weather at the beginning of the project prevented workers from starting construction and the monsoon weather in the summer hampered the ability of suppliers to deliver materials such as cement to the site.[10] The delays were such that they nearly resulted in a postponement to the start of the national league, with the Bhutan Football Federation considering moving the initial matches to the Royal Bhutan Police's ground.[10] The playing surface was manufactured in the Netherlands and was laid by companies from England and the Netherlands and was the first part of a two-stage series of works to install artificial turf at both Changlimithang and Changjiji Football Ground, also in Thimphu.[7] The first match to be played on the new pitch was the opening match in the inaugural edition of the Bhutan National League between Druk Pol and Ugyen Academy.[11] The President of the Bhutan Olympic Committee, Jigyel Ugyen Wangchuk, having officially opened the new playing surface, then took part in the first match as a player for Druk Pol.[11] The total cost of the new pitch was $900,000.[7]

Unusually for a national stadium, and as a result of the conversion of the playing surface to artificial turf, the football field at Changlimithang is available for public hire and is extremely popular with people in Thimphu, with the pitch booked for public use from 5pm-1am most days during the week as office workers seek to make use of it[8] and from 7am to 9pm at weekends.[12] This has proved to be a valuable source of income for the Bhutan Football Federation. With teams needing to make bookings weeks in advance, the Federation made Nu 75,000 in the first fortnight that the pitch was available to the public, with the money gained from hire charges going towards financing additional artificial surfaces planned for elsewhere in the country.[12] Demand for the chance to play on an artificial surface is now so great that the Bhutan Football Federation are prepared to begin to hire out the artificial pitch at Changjiji, currently available only to train members of the national squad.[13] There are plans to open artificial surfaces in three more Dzongkhags in the near future.[13]

Changlimithang played host to the FIFA World Cup trophy as part of its global tour prior to the 2014 FIFA World Cup.[14]

References

  1. ↑ http://www.worldofstadiums.com/asia/bhutan/
  2. 1 2 3 "Historic Changlimithang stadium inaugurated". bbs.com.bt. Bhutan Broadcasting Service. 13 October 2011. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 "K2: Changlimithang ground". kuenselonline.com. Kuensel Online. 9 June 2008. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Dorji, Kinley (2006). "Thimphu: A face-lift for Changlimithang". raonline.com. RA Online / Kuensel. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  5. 1 2 "Floodlighting at Changlimithang". drukgreen.bt. Druk Green. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  6. 1 2 "Thousands celebrate in Changlimithang". bbs.bt. Bhutan Broadcasting Service. 15 October. Retrieved 30 July 2014. Check date values in: |date= (help)
  7. 1 2 3 4 Phuntsho, Tashi (13 December 2013). "To open artificial turf". kuenselonline.com. Kuensel Online. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  8. 1 2 Norbu, Passang (12 April 2013). "New enthusiasm for an old sport". kuenselonline.com. Kuensel Online. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  9. ↑ Yeshey, Lobzang (9 March 2012). "FIFA to help Bhutan’s football". bhutanobserver.bt. Bhutan Observer. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  10. 1 2 Dorji, Ugyen (25 July 2012). "Changlimethang Artificial-Turf Delayed, Fans Disappointed And Players Settle For RBP Grounds". thebhutanese.bt. The Bhutanese. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  11. 1 2 Phuntsho, Tashi (17 December 2012). "First match on new turf sees three headers". kuenselonline. Kuensel Online. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  12. 1 2 Phuntsho, Tashi (31 December 2012). "Hired out for 14 hours a day, 5 days a week". kuenselonline.com. Kuensel Online. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  13. 1 2 Dorji, Kezang (19 November 2013). "Artificial turf raking in the green". kuenselonline.com. Kuensel Online. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  14. ↑ Dorji, Tshering (7 December 2013). "World Cup trophy tour – Countdown for Bhutan begins". kuenselonline.com. Kuensel Online. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
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