The Singapore Sports Hub is a fully integrated sports, entertainment and lifestyle hub in Kallang, Singapore. Built in 2014 to host sporting and entertainment events, it replaced the former National Stadium on the recommendation of the then Community Development and Sports Minister Abdullah Tarmugi in 2001. His proposal was based on a Committee on Sporting Singapore report to promote a culture of sports in the city-state. It is the first and largest sports facilities infrastructure Public-Private-Partnership project in the world and Singapore's flagship PPP project of this nature. Following an Invitation to Tender by the then Singapore Sports Council in 2006, the consortium SportsHub Pte Ltd comprising four equity partners, InfraRed Capital Partners, Dragages Singapore, Cushman & Wakefield Facilities & Engineering, and Global Spectrum Asia, won the bid for the project on 19 January 2008. It was officially appointed on 25 August 2010 to design, build, finance and operate the Singapore Sports Hub for a period of 25 years.
History
Construction of the Singapore Sports Hub began with a ground-breaking ceremony on 29 September 2010, before the former arena there was demolished. Served primarily by the Stadium MRT station, it was completed in June 2014 and, among others, rolled out a new 55,000-seat National Stadium with the largest free-spanning retractable dome roof in the world, an aquatic centre, a multi-sport indoor arena, and a water sports facility. The Singapore Sports Hub, which incorporated an existing 12,000-seat Singapore Indoor Stadium, began operations on 30 June 2014 for the general public to start using its facilities. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong officially opened it 13 months later on 26 July 2015. The Rugby World Club 10s on 21–22 June 2014 was the first sporting event at the new national stadium. The match between a Singapore Selection and Juventus Football Club on 16 August 2014 was the first football game held at the new stadium. Since opening its doors, the Sports Hub has been a venue for major international, regional and local events. It has played host to the 2015 SEA Games, 2016 Singapore National Day Parade, BNP Paribas , HSBC Singapore Rugby Sevens, International Champions Cup and superstars Madonna, Coldplay and Jay Chou.
Facilities
The 35-hectare Singapore Sports Hub includes the following facilities:
A 55,000-capacity National Stadium with a retractable roof and movable tiered seating
A 6,000-capacity OCBC Aquatic Centre that meets FINA standards
A 3,000-capacity OCBC Arena which is scalable and flexible in layout
A Water Sports Centre featuring kayaking and canoeing
A 41,000 sq m Kallang Wave Mall which features an indoor climbing wall
A Splash-N-Surf facility
A 100PLUS Promenade that encircles the National Stadium
Singapore Youth Olympic Museum & Singapore Sports Museum
Sports Hub Library
Shimano Cycling World
24/7 community facilities such as beach volleyball, hard courts lawn bowls, giant chess, skate park and running & cycling paths
Construction timeline
The demolition of the former National Stadium was slated to begin in 2008 while the construction of the new Sports Hub was originally planned for completion in 2011. Due to the financial crisis of 2007–2010 and high construction costs, the project was inevitably delayed. In 2008, barring any major problems, the hub should be ready by 2013 when Singapore would play host to the 27th Southeast Asian Games. However, expected delays were announced in 2009 and Singapore had to withdrew its hosting rights for the 2013 Southeast Asian Games. In August 2010, it was reported that the contract to begin construction had been signed with plans for the demolition works of the former National Stadium to start in October 2010 and for the completion of the new Sports Hub in April 2014. The demolition of the National Stadium started with a groundbreaking ceremony on 29 September 2010, marking the official end of the Grand Old Dame.
"The Consortium displayed significant strengths in programming, team culture and partnership, functionality and layout. It also offered the best value for money solution for Singapore."
