Bugårdsparken ('' English'': the Bugårds Park) is a 60-acre park and the main sports center in

Sandefjord, Norway Sandefjord () is a city and the most populous municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. The municipality of Sandefjord was established on 1 January 1838. The municipality of Sandar was merged into Sandefjord on 1 January 1969. On 1 ...

. It is also home to a 20-acre (8.2 ha) duck pond, Bugårdsdammen, as well as designated picnic areas and hiking trails. The park is organized for 18 different sports, including ice skating, ice hockey, soccer, swimming, archery, rollerskating, golf, badminton, and more. Besides an indoor 2,500 m.² public pool, other buildings include Jotunhallen, which is used for handball, and Pingvinhallen, which houses tennis courts.

Storstadion Storstadion is a multi-purpose stadium in Sandefjord, Norway. It was the home ground of Sandefjord Fotball until the summer of 2007. It is currently used mostly for track and field meets and football matches, and is the home ground of Sandefjord ...

is also located here, current home of Sandefjord BK and former home of Sandefjord Fotball (1999-2007). The sports park was established in 1946 and the idea of such a park came from former

Sandefjord Ballklubb Sandefjord Ballklubb is a Norwegian football club from Sandefjord, currently playing in Norwegian Fourth Division, the fifth tier in the Norwegian football league system. The club was founded on 27 February 1917. Their home matches are played at ...

player Sigurd B. Gade. In 1961, the Norwegian Championship (NM) in ice skating was held in the park. It attracted 10,300 spectators. In the mid-1940s, the sports park was, with the exception of

Ekebergsletta Ekebergsletta is a field in the neighborhood of Ekeberg in the Nordstrand district, southeast of downtown Oslo, Norway. Ekebergsletta is a large grass covered area located on Ekeberg plateau. Originally the area was farmland where crops were cult ...

in Oslo, the largest such sports facility in Norway. The sports facilities in the park were built from 1952 to 1959 when ice skating rinks, swimming pools, tennis courts, an ice-hockey field, and roads were constructed. Work on the park began in 1948, but its official opening ceremony took place on 22 June 1972, 25 years after the park's opening. The 1972 opening ceremony took place after the new stadium was completed with changing rooms and bleachers. The swimming pool was completed in 1982 and had over 100,000 annual visitors in its first years. The park received

Rolf Hofmo Rolf Hofmo (10 August 1898, in Kristiania – 11 May 1966, in Oslo) was a Norwegian politician and sports official. He was chairman of Arbeidernes Idrettsforbund (AIF) from 1939 to 1940, and central in the merge negotiations with Norges Landsforb ...

’s Award as Norway's best sports park in 1989.

Bugårdsdammen

The lake, Bugårdsdammen (formerly Vannverket), was built in 1875 as a reservoir for the city's waterworks. Trees were planted around the reservoir and it became a popular site for excursions. Bands would regularly perform from boats in the lake. The pond is home to wildlife such as swans and ducks, as well as fish species including

European carp The Eurasian carp or European carp (''Cyprinus carpio''), widely known as the common carp, is a widespread freshwater fish of eutrophic waters in lakes and large rivers in Europe and Asia.Fishbase''Cyprinus carpio'' Linnaeus, 1758/ref>Arkive The ...

, Northern pike, European perch and

Brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a European species of salmonid fish that has been widely introduced into suitable environments globally. It includes purely freshwater populations, referred to as the riverine ecotype, ''Salmo trutta'' morph ...

. Commonly observed bird species near Bugårdsdammen include the Northern shoveler, Eurasian teal, Common merganser, Red-breasted merganser, Little grebe, Eurasian wigeon, Common moorhen, Eurasian coot, Tufted duck, Common goldeneye,

Mallard The mallard () or wild duck (''Anas platyrhynchos'') is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa, and has been introduced to New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Arge ...

Mute swan The mute swan (''Cygnus olor'') is a species of swan and a member of the waterfowl family Anatidae. It is native to much of Eurosiberia, and (as a rare winter visitor) the far north of Africa. It is an introduced species in North America, home ...

, Common gull, European herring gull, Lesser black-backed gull, and the Black-headed gull. It is an artificial pond which was created in 1875–1876 with the purpose of housing the city's waterworks. The pond was later used for swimming and had a diving platform. The lake is however no longer suited for swimming.Gjerseth, Simen (2016). ''Nye Sandefjord''. Liv forlag. Page 245. .

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bugaardsparken Sandefjord Buildings and structures in Sandefjord Culture in Vestfold og Telemark Tourist attractions in Vestfold og Telemark Parks in Norway