The future Famalicão Athletics Centre, located in Talvai, will be one of the most advanced sports facilities in the country; between construction and equipment, it will represent a total municipal investment of around 8 million euros. During the site visit on Thursday, 2 April, the President of the Portuguese Athletics Federation, Domingos Castro, accompanied by the Mayor, Mário Passos, highlighted the certification of the complex as a national-level High-Performance Centre as the next logical step for the facility. This transition would elevate Vila Nova de Famalicão to the select group of cities with facilities of excellence for high-level competition, currently limited to Maia, the Algarve and Lisbon.
The vision shared by the municipality and the Federation envisages the complex becoming a magnet for international teams. Domingos Castro, who had already indicated at the ground-breaking ceremony that Famalicão would have the best centre in the country, reinforced that conviction today. “It will, without a doubt, be the best athletics sports complex we will have in Portugal,” said the official, highlighting distinctive technical features such as the “installation of two 100-metre tracks facing opposite directions, which guarantee athletes ideal performance conditions, regardless of wind direction”. As part of this centralisation strategy, the relocation of the Braga Athletics Association’s headquarters to the new facilities in Famalicão has already been confirmed.
Mário Passos emphasised that, although the focus is on high performance and sports associations, the facility will also have a strong social dimension. “We will set aside time for the people of Famalicão for walking and free running, as well as programmes for senior citizens and schools.”
Designed to accommodate all athletics disciplines – including jumping, running and throwing events – the complex involves the construction of an eight-lane athletics track with an inner grass area, stands, various support buildings and changing rooms, a gymnasium, medical facilities and lighting suitable for television broadcasts. The works also include the enhancement of the surrounding area, which will feature a gravel warm-up track, open-air stands, a car park and access roads. The entire facility’s infrastructure has been designed to be fully accessible and is suitable for adapted sports.
With the works scheduled for completion by the end of the summer, the local council is already working on municipal regulations to manage access to the track, ensuring that, the day after the opening, the complex will be ready to welcome the more than 300 registered athletes who make Vila Nova de Famalicão the leading centre for the sport in the district of Braga.
