Cardiff Arena on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
Cardiff Arena, also known as Cardiff Bay Ice Arena and by
The last game in the Cardiff Arena was played against Coventry Blaze on 27 February 2016. The first game in Ice Arena Wales was against the
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...
fans as the Big Blue Tent, was a temporary ice rink
An ice rink (or ice skating rink) is a frozen body of water or an artificial sheet of ice where people can ice skate or play winter sports. Ice rinks are also used for exhibitions, contests and ice shows. The growth and increasing popularity of ...
at Cardiff International Sports Village in Cardiff Bay
Cardiff Bay (; colloquially "The Bay") is an area and freshwater lake in Cardiff, Wales. The site of a former tidal bay and estuary, it is the river mouth of the River Taff and River Ely, Ely. The body of water was converted into a lake as part ...
, Cardiff
Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...
, Wales
Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
. It had a capacity of 2,500 for ice hockey and was home to the Cardiff Devils after leaving the Wales National Ice Rink which was being demolished to make way for a John Lewis
John Robert Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020) was an American civil rights activist and politician who served in the United States House of Representatives for from 1987 until his death in 2020. He participated in the 1960 Nashville ...
department store.
It was also used for figure skating
Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, with its introduction occurring at the Figure skating at the 1908 Summer Olympi ...
and hosted three competitions (in February 2009, 2011 and 2012). It was replaced as the home of the Cardiff Devils when they moved into the Ice Arena Wales.
History
Construction, opening
The ice rink was aprefabricated
Prefabrication is the practice of assembling components of a structure in a factory or other manufacturing site, and transporting complete assemblies or sub-assemblies to the construction site where the structure is to be located. Some research ...
structure constructed in Finland
Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...
. Assembly began in 2006 and after a number of delays opened on 6 December 2006 when the Devils hosted the Manchester Phoenix
Manchester Phoenix were a semi professional ice hockey team from Greater Manchester, England. The club was formed in 2003 as a result of the efforts of supporters group ''Friends of Manchester Ice Hockey'' to bring top-level ice hockey back to M ...
(who, coincidentally, were also waiting for a similar venue to be completed) in an Elite Ice Hockey League
The Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL), sometimes referred to internationally as the British Elite League, is an ice hockey league in the United Kingdom. Formed in 2003 following the demise of the Ice Hockey Superleague, it is the highest level ...
fixture. The Devils won the game 7-4 while Manchester's Tony Hand became the first player to score a goal at the rink.
Closure
The last game in the Cardiff Arena was played against Coventry Blaze on 27 February 2016. The first game in Ice Arena Wales was against the Belfast Giants
The Belfast Giants (known officially as the Stena Line Belfast Giants due to sponsorship) are a professional ice hockey team based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. They compete in the UK's Elite Ice Hockey League, Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL). T ...
on 12 March 2016.
In Summer 2016, the rink was dismantled. The wooden frame was moved to Leeds where it will be upgraded to form part of the new ice rink located on Elland Road, yards away from Leeds United Football Club. The upgrade will consist of new walls and an extension at the non-seated end of the rink which will include a bar and cafe over two floors. The stairs to the seating area have also been moved to the back in order to improve sightlines.
See also
* Sport in CardiffReferences
External links
* * {{Sport in Cardiff Defunct sports venues in Wales Indoor arenas in Wales Ice hockey venues in Wales Sports venues completed in 2006 Sports venues demolished in 2016 Demolished buildings and structures in Wales 2006 establishments in Wales 2016 disestablishments in Wales