“In 2021, the Board of Trustees of our foundation, established after the so-called model shift, took charge of the university as a maintaining body. The management of UD then designated the development of sports as a strategic goal, together with the related educational, research and innovation efforts, complemented with the development of leisure and competitive sports. The current ceremony today mark yet another milestone in this process,” said the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Count István Tisza Foundation for the University of Debrecen at the inauguration ceremony of the sports complex on Dóczy József utca on Monday.
György Kossa explained that both the respect for traditions, which is so characteristic of the University of Debrecen (UD) and the modern present and future are present in the building at the same time. He emphasized that sport would continue to be a key element in the cooperation between the University of Debrecen and the local government of the city of Debrecen. This cooperation and partnership will cover as many areas as possible, enabling sport in Debrecen to be outstandingly powerful through the fusion of the strengths of local sports clubs DEAC and DVSC.
László Papp, Mayor of Debrecen, recalled that the sports-friendly government policy has empowered our city to become enriched with a number of modern sports facilities ever since the early 2000s. He also praised the sports-related investments of UD, as a result of which numerous developments have been implemented on Dóczy utca during the course of the past 15 years. A clear-cut indication of acknowledging and appreciating these efforts is that Debrecen will be one of the hosts of the upcoming European Under-17 Football Championship.
“The sports complex that has been created here is worthy of attention even at the European level. The city of Debrecen and the University of Debrecen are among the top supporters of Hungarian sports,” said Mayor Papp.
The inauguration ceremony was also attended by Ádám Schmidt, Minister of State for Sport of the Hungarian Ministry of Defense. He admitted that, if he had a chance to go to university again, he would most likely choose the University of Debrecen.
“The vibrant academic atmosphere and active sports life, so characteristic of this city, make Debrecen extraordinarily attractive for young people,” said the Minister of State.
Ádám Schmidt added that the State Secretariat for Sport by all means considers it a top-priority task to support college and university sports life, as related activities clearly facilitate strong commitment to the institutions and generates a unique community-building power.
“On Dóczy utca in Debrecen, a modern building has been created that meets contemporary requirements and fits neatly into the environment. I hope that this will further strengthen the desire and commitment of Debrecen university students to sports,” the State Secretary added.
In his speech, Zoltán Bács, Chancellor of the University of Debrecen, recalled that the University of Debrecen had already provided numerous opportunities for doing sports as long as a hundred years ago. However, a real breakthrough in this respect has occurred only recently.
“The systematic work, thanks to which our university has become a decisive training and research center of sports sciences in Hungarian higher education, started 17 years ago. Parallel with these efforts, DEAC has become one of the best sports clubs in the nation, incorporating as many as 32 different departments and more than 3,000 registered athletes,” said Zoltán Bács. He also added that designing and constructing the sports complex on Dóczy Street took one and a half years each, while the original plans were modified several times during the course of this period in order to make the most versatile use of the spaces available.
“We are really proud that this new facility, with its glass corridor and exhibition space visible from outside, will be an emblematic building of Dóczy utca. At the same time, it will also enable its users to work and learn in a comfortable, expedient and memorable environment” said the Chancellor. According to Zoltán Bács, several hundreds of thousands of people are expected to use the modernized sports campus every year.
During the course of the (re)construction, the old grandstand, which had been built originally in 1928, was renovated and extended to include two new wings of almost a thousand square meters floor space on each side. Thus, the three-story facility now has 1,500 square meters of floor space altogether. The first floor houses the administrative offices of the Sports Science Coordination Institute and the departments of DEAC. The two new extensions are connected by a corridor running along behind the old grandstand and functioning as a permanent exhibition space for DEAC relics. Classrooms are on the second floor. Furthermore, the complex also incorporates a grandstand, locker rooms, further offices, storage venues and workshops. The overall cost of the investment implemented by Dryvit Profi Kft. and sponsored by the University of Debrecen was HUF 1 billion 320 million and it took a total of eighteen months to complete.
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