Ondrej Nepela Arena

Slovakian sports arena, opened 1940
  • 1948–1949
  • 1957
  • 1989–1992
  • 2018
Rebuilt2009–2011Construction costRebuild: $108 million
($154 million in 2023 dollars[3])ArchitectKamil Gross, Arnošt Adámek, Juraj Uhlíř and Horváth Eduard
Dušan Fischer (rebuild)Main contractorsIngsteel (rebuild)[1][2]TenantsHC Slovan Bratislava (Slovak Extraliga)

The Ondrej Nepela Arena (Slovak: Zimný Štadión Ondreja Nepelu) (also known as Orange Arena during the 2011 IIHF Championship and later as Tipos Aréna, previously Slovnaft Arena, for sponsorship reasons) is an indoor arena in Bratislava, Slovakia. It is primarily used for ice hockey and it is the home arena of the HC Slovan Bratislava.

History

Ice rink and original arena

The, now indoor, arena in 1959; a roof was added in 1957
The old arena in August 2007, before reconstruction

The arena was first opened on 15 December 1940 as the first public artificial ice rink in Bratislava.[4] The first official ice hockey game was played on 21 December of the same year. Between 1948 and 1949, new tribunes were built in order to increase the standing capacity from around 300 to 11,000. In 1957 the open-air venue was covered with a steel structure that required supporting columns,[5] and 4,800 temporary seats were installed with the standing capacity reduced to 7,000.[6]

Another significant renovation took place between 1989 and 1992, in time for hosting the 1992 Men's Ice Hockey World Championships, and following this the arena now had a total of 7,747 seats until its full reconstruction started in early 2009. This time the interior was changed significantly (new seats, locker rooms and technical equipment) and the arena received a new reinforced concrete roof.[7]

Since 29 September 1995 the arena is named in honour of Ondrej Nepela,[8] a Slovak figure skater who competed for Czechoslovakia in the late 1960s and early 1970s and who was the Men's figure skating champion at the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo, Japan.

New modern arena

The new arena and practice rinks under construction (January 2011)

In the period from April 2009 to February 2011, the venue was almost entirely rebuilt and upgraded, in line with IIHF, Slovak, and international specifications and largely funded by the Slovakian government, as part of preparations for hosting the 2011 IIHF World Championships. More than €87 million was spent to install a new steel roof, modernize facilities, build two new adjacent practice arenas, an underground car park and increase the seating capacity from 8,350 to 10,000.[9][7] During the reconstruction phase, 80% of the original building was demolished and the resident ice hockey club HC Slovan Bratislava moved to the Vladimír Dzurilla Ice Stadium in the Ružinov borough of Bratislava.[10]

The reconstructed arena opened in April 2011, with one of the most advanced game presentations, LED scoreboards, and security systems ever built.[11] In addition to the arena, a new DoubleTree by Hilton hotel was built, which mainly served as the accommodation for the foreign teams and staff during the championships. Further improvements to the arena's facilities were carried out in 2018 to improve its ability to host the 2019 IIHF World Championship.[12] The work included an upgraded refrigeration system, a refurbished ice rink with new boards and plexiglas, improved team dressing rooms and other areas, and technical upgrades.[13][14]

Notable events

Sport

An NHL pre-season game was held at the Samsung Arena between HC Slovan Bratislava and the Tampa Bay Lightning on September 30, 2008. Tampa Bay won 3–2 in overtime. On October 2, 2011, the arena hosted another NHL pre-season game, this time between HC Slovan Bratislava and New York Rangers who beat the home team 4–1.[15]

An overview of some sport events held in the arena:

1990s
2000s
2010s
2020s

Music

An overview of some musical events from 2011 onwards
Date Artists Events
2011
June 29 Sting Symphonicity Tour
November 6 Rammstein Made in Germany 1995–2011 (tour)
November 13 Sade Sade Live Tour
2012
July 10 Elton John Greatest Hits Tour (Elton John)
December 20 José Carreras The Singles Tour
2013
April 19 Beyoncé The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour
May 9 Eros Ramazzotti Noi World Tour
December 29 Andrea Bocelli
2014
February 6 Depeche Mode Delta Machine Tour
May 5 Peter Gabriel Back To Front Tour
October 19 Kylie Minogue Kiss Me Once Tour
2015
February 2 Ennio Morricone My Life in Music Tour 2015
February 27 Katy Perry Prismatic World Tour
April 18 Robbie Williams Let Me Entertain You Tour
2016
January 19 Ennio Morricone 60 Years of Music Tour 2016
March 15 Eros Ramazzotti Perfetto Tour
May 5 Hans Zimmer
May 27 André Rieu
November 9 Jean Michel Jarre Electronica Tour
November 26 Piotr Rubik
December 16 José Carreras
2017
May 11 Vanessa Mae
June 2 Hans Zimmer
November 19 Andrea Bocelli
2018
January 13 Piotr Rubik
August 31 Thirty Seconds to Mars Monolith Tour
2019
June 30 Sting Sting: My Songs Tour
October 5 Eros Ramazzotti Vita Ce N'è Tour
October 31 Enrique Iglesias All The Hits Live (Enrique Iglesias)
November 20 Scorpions Crazy World Tour
2020
February 16 Hans Zimmer The World of Hans Zimmer
February 26 Maluma Maluma World Tour
2021
November 18 André Rieu
2022
March 3 Hans Zimmer
May 7 OneRepublic
August 3 Slipknot We Are Not Your Kind

Transport

Ondrej Nepela Arena is located in the third district of Bratislava, Slovakia. The arena can be approached by tram, trolleybus and bus.[16]

Service Stop Line Walking distance from arena
Tram Česká 4 250 m
Bus N53, X4
Trolleybus TIPOS aréna 47, 60, 61 20 m
Bus 39, 53, 63, 78, 163, N74

Drivers can park directly under the Ondrej Nepela Arena. There are place for 365 cars. An additional 1,300 parking spaces offer the Central Shopping Center, which is approximately 400 m away from the arena. Next 994 parking spaces are under National Football Stadium, which is 300 m away.

Image gallery

  • 2008 IIHF Inline Hockey World Championship
    2008 IIHF Inline Hockey World Championship
  • The main entrance after reconstruction in June 2011
    The main entrance after reconstruction in June 2011
  • 2011 Ball Hockey World Championship
    2011 Ball Hockey World Championship
  • Exterior during the 2019 IIHF World Championship
    Exterior during the 2019 IIHF World Championship
  • 2016 European Figure Skating Championships
    2016 European Figure Skating Championships

See also

References

  1. ^ a.s, SITA Slovenská tlačová agentúra (April 28, 2011). "Ingsteel zrekonštruoval zimný štadión za 73,1 mil. eur". SITA.sk (in Slovak). Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  2. ^ "Ingsteel: Štadión sme zrekonštruovali nadštandardne". Pravda.sk (in Slovak). May 22, 2011. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  3. ^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  4. ^ a.s, Petit Press (5 February 2004). "Starý „zimák" mal šatne najprv na kúpalisku". bratislava.sme.sk (in Slovak). Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  5. ^ "Grossov zimný štadión". www.historicky.sk (in Slovak). May 15, 2014. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  6. ^ s.r.o, Global24 (January 26, 2018). "Zimný štadión na Tehelnom poli bol kedysi najmodernejšou športovou stavbou v Československu". Bratislava24.sk (in Slovak). Retrieved 16 December 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  7. ^ a b "Orange Arena". IIHF. Archived from the original on 27 November 2010.
  8. ^ "Architekt Kamil Gross". www.skolske.sk (in Slovak). Retrieved 17 December 2023.
  9. ^ "Ondrej Nepela arena reconstruction going to plan". IIHF. 5 November 2010. Archived from the original on 29 June 2011. Retrieved 5 November 2010.
  10. ^ "Главная арена хоккейного ЧМ-2011 - 9 Травня 2011 - Стадіонні новини - арени та стадіони світу". stadiums.at.ua (in Russian). Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  11. ^ a.s., Petit Press. "Mikloš: Na štadión viac nedáme, len požičiame".
  12. ^ a.s, Petit Press (February 21, 2018). "Bratislava ice stadium will require €2 million". spectator.sme.sk (in Slovak). Retrieved 17 December 2023.
  13. ^ "IIHF - A better Ondrej Nepela Arena". IIHF International Ice Hockey Federation. 22 May 2018. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
  14. ^ "IIHF - The world comes to Slovakia". IIHF International Ice Hockey Federation. 2019. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
  15. ^ "Slovan Bratislava prehral s NY Rangers 1:4 - Webnoviny.sk". 2 October 2011.
  16. ^ imhd.sk. "Linky MHD a IDS (17. 10. 2016)". imhd.sk Bratislava.

External links

Media related to Ondrej Nepela Arena at Wikimedia Commons

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