Palais omnisports Marseille Grand-Est

The Palais omnisports Marseille Grand-Est (French for 'Marseille Great Eastern Multisport Palace'), abbreviated as POMGE, is a multi-purpose arena primarily used as an ice rink, located in Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, France. It is the home venue for ice hockey team Spartiates de Marseille.[4]
It was inaugurated in 2009, and is popularly known as Patinoire de la Capelette after the Marseille quarter it sits in, la Capelette.[2]

Palais omnisports
Marseille Grand-Est
Address12 Boulevard Fernand Bonnefoy
LocationMarseille, France
Capacity5600 (ice hockey)
Field size60x30 metre
Surface21,487 m2[1]
Construction
Broke ground26 April 2007[1]
Opened11 December 2009[2]
Construction cost€ 48 million[2]
ArchitectChabanne et Partenaires[1]
Main contractorsGagne Construction Métallique
Chagnaud Construction
SPIE Batignolles/Valérian[3]
Tenants
Spartiates de Marseille (Division 1)
(2009–present)

History

Ice availabity has historically been an issue in the Marseille metropolitan area, one of the France's three largest agglomerations.

A semi-permanent 56x26 metre rink was built at the Parc des Expositions Marseille-Chanot in the wake of the 1968 Grenoble Olympics,[5] which introduced ice sports to the broader French public, but it was dismantled in 1974.[5]

A new ice rink, Patinoire du Rouet, opened the same year inside a repurposed fruit packing plant, but it was severely undersized at 40x20 metre. The facility closed in 1984 and no other venue would be active in the area until 1993,[5] when a recreational rink measuring 46x20 metre opened on Avenue Jules Cantini. However it closed within two years.[5]

Another rink called Megaglace opened in 1994 near the neighbouring college town of Aix-en-Provence. Built inside an old sanitary ware retail space and measuring 42x20 metre, it again fell short of the standards expected from a major agglomeration.[6]
Finally in 1998, a sister facility called Megaglace 2 opened in Aubagne. Although still relatively spartan, it boasted a small stand and a 56x26 metre track, in compliance with minimum IIHF regulations.[5]

In March 2004, the municipality of Marseille launched preliminary consultations to give the city a suitable ice sports facility as part of a broader urban rehabilitation plan.[7] In March 2005, the project presented by architectural firm Chabanne et Partenaires was selected.[8]

After some delays the facility, called Palais de la glace et de la glisse de Marseille during most of its planning and building phases, was inaugurated on December 11, 2009, under the new name Palais omnisports Marseille Grand-Est.[2] The ceremony was attended by Minister of Sports Roselyne Bachelot-Narquin, and featured an exhibition by former ISU Ice Dancing World Champions Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Schoenfelder.[9]

Building

The POMGE cost an estimated €48 million to build, with most of the work split between main contractors Gagne Construction Métallique, Chagnaud Construction and SPIE Batignolles/Valérian.[3]

Ice rink

At 5,600 in hockey configuration, the main hall is the largest ice rink in France in terms of spectator capacity,[4] excluding ice capable entertainment venues such as Paris' Accor Arena, home of the ice hockey Coupe de France final.[10] It features an Olympic size pad.[3]
The second ice rink is a recreational track, and has an unconventional shape consisting of circular areas and elliptical corridors. It has a surface of 1250 m2 (compared to 1800 m2 for the Olympic size pad).[2]

Skate park

In addition to the ice facilities, the Palais is also home to a 3500 m2 indoor skate park for roller skating, skateboarding and BMX activities.[2]

Notable events

References
  1. Galoffre, Céline (27 April 2007). "Un Palais de la glisse à Marseille". batiactu.com. BatiActu Groupe. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
  2. de Broqua, Aliette (10 December 2009). "Le Palais Omnisports de Marseille Grand-Est inauguré le 11 décembre". econostrum.info. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
  3. "Inauguration du Palais Omnisports Marseille Grand-Est" (PDF) (Press release). Service de presse–Ville de Marseille. 11 December 2009. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
  4. "Hockey sur glace : coup de projecteur sur ces Marseillais nouveaux champions de France de Division 1". france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr. France TV. 26 April 2021. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
  5. Ferrari, Christine; Gaudence, Robert; David, Jean; Foulon, Pascal; Autié, Gérard. "Histoire du hockey sur glace à Marseille". hockeyarchives.info. Marc Branchu. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
  6. Bayer, Thierry (22 August 2020). "La patinoire d'Aix-en-Provence". laixois.fr. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
  7. Challiol, Brigitte (22 April 2004). "La ville de Marseille redessine ses quartiers à l'entrée de l'autoroute est". lesechos.com. Pearson. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
  8. "Marseille, enfin, à l'âge de glace". cyberarchi.com. Groupe Cyber Archi. 9 March 2005. Archived from the original on 2005-03-15. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
  9. Fiorito, Jean-Jacques (12 December 2009). "C'est parti pour le palais de la glace à Marseille". laprovence.com. Groupe La Provence. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
  10. "Spectacle Paris Accord Hotel Arena". nsworld.fr. NS World. Retrieved 5 October 2021.

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