Kent Sport at the University of Kent will be providing students even more opportunity to participate in sport with the addition of a new world-class 3G pitch as a part of its programme of ongoing sports facility expansion. Students at Kent will now experience more sporting opportunities than ever before.
Graham Holmes, Director of Sport at Kent says, “The new 3G pitch will be a first-rate facility of exceptional quality and a considerable asset to the University of Kent. This exciting new facility will complement the wide-range of first-rate sports and recreational facilities already available at Kent maintaining our reputation as one of the leading sports providers in the region.”
The new 3G will enable back-to-back fixtures and training for rugby, football and American football with all year round playability overriding some of the constraints of grass pitches. It will also provide optimal playing conditions for matches from recreational to top-level rugby and football.
The pitch development will start at the end of July 2015 and be available by January 2016. It is an eco-friendly solution re-using as many as 20,000 vehicle tyres in the construction materials. The 3G pitch is designed by Field Turf, has passed the strictest tests and provides the highest level of performance and safety for players. It will include a new spectator area and be fully flood lit.
To achieve the quality standards required, Kent Sport selected the Vertex RGF, which is tested to FIFA and World Rugby standards. The pitch can be split to allow up to three simultaneous training sessions. The University is providing a large number of people from recreational users to elite athletes with the most up-to-date, professional-standard facilities.
Ben Trott, Assistant Director (Operations) says, “This 3G pitch is part of the continual drive to develop University of Kent sports facilities to meet growing student demand and recognizing how crucial sport and recreational activities are for student development. It will be one of a number of new significant Kent Sport developments planned for 2015-2016 and beyond.”
For further information about the Kent Sport 3G including what type of footwear players should use on this new surface, and to stay up to date with the 3G pitch development and other planned sports facility developments, visit www.kent.ac.uk/sports/facilities and follow UniKentSports on Facebook.