Cooks Gardens
Encyclopedia
Cooks Gardens is a multi-purpose stadium
in Wanganui
, New Zealand
. It is one of the finest stadia in New Zealand and is currently used mostly for rugby union
matches, athletics and cycling. The main stadium, known as westpac stadium is able to hold 20,700 people with 3,500 covered seats.
In 1996 a multi-million dollar re-development of Cooks Gardens took place. This included an all-weather synthetic 400m athletic track, the first wooden cycling velodrome in New Zealand, and a new grandstand.
Redevelopment of Cooks Gardens was completed in 2004 with the construction of two further grandstands
Multi-purpose stadium
Multi-purpose stadiums are a type of stadium designed in such a way as to be easily used by multiple sports. While any stadium could potentially host more than one sport, this concept usually refers to a specific design philosophy that stresses multi-functionality over specificity...
in Wanganui
Wanganui
Whanganui , also spelled Wanganui, is an urban area and district on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is part of the Manawatu-Wanganui region....
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. It is one of the finest stadia in New Zealand and is currently used mostly for rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
matches, athletics and cycling. The main stadium, known as westpac stadium is able to hold 20,700 people with 3,500 covered seats.
History
Cooks Gardens use as a sporting facility commenced in 1896. Since then Cooks Gardens has been the venue of a number of the world’s historic sporting occasions. One of these occasions was on 27 January 1962 when tens of thousands of spectators crammed into Cooks Gardens to witness athlete Peter Snell break the world record for the mile.In 1996 a multi-million dollar re-development of Cooks Gardens took place. This included an all-weather synthetic 400m athletic track, the first wooden cycling velodrome in New Zealand, and a new grandstand.
Redevelopment of Cooks Gardens was completed in 2004 with the construction of two further grandstands
Features
- Westpac Stadium is the hub of Cooks Gardens and contains the playing field and athletics track and has a capacity of 20,700 with 3,500 covered seats in the grandstands. The stadium hosts all Wanganui NPC rugby matches as well as hosting several other International rugby matches. Many National and International athletic meets are held at Cooks Gardens as well as Professional Rugby league matches featuring NRL sides and top level soccer games are also hosted.
- The Velodrome contains a 250m wooden track and has hosted several International cycling meets.
- The Function Centre is situated within Westpac Stadium and contains a bar and kitchen facilities.