Rekortan M re-topping and Polytan SMART in Cosenza
Defying fate
Few places in Italy are as long-suffering as Cosenza, the provincial capital of Calabria, about 300 km south of Naples. Ever-changing power struggles hardly gave Cosenza any breathing space; Romans and Carthaginians fought over the city, later it was the Byzantines and Lombards, then finally the Normans, Spaniards, Austrians and French. And let’s not forget the ensuing destruction. To make matters worse, Cosenza has also been devastated and partially razed to the ground by earthquakes about a dozen times in its history.
But the city has not let any of these fateful blows get it down; in fact, it has seen enormous population growth for over 50 years. Like clockwork, talented footballers learn the tricks of their trade here, with many of them now playing in Serie A and even in the Italian national team. Cosenza Calcio is a successful football club in Serie B and plays its home games in the Stadio San Vito – Gigi Marulla, which is also used for athletics events. Rugby is played next door, as is tennis and hockey.
In the immediate vicinity is the Campo Scuola Cosenza – the training ground of the amateur sports association Cosenza K42, a facility that is also used as a school sports ground in Via degli Stadi and was extensively renovated in 2022. As part of these works, the six-lane circular track was laid with Polytan Rekortan M in Hertha blue, as was the sprint track, the separate hurdles track, and the long-jump and high-jump areas. The consistency of the Rekortan M tread strikes the perfect balance between excellent shock absorption and maximum acceleration – properties that are appreciated by both middle-distance runners and sprinters alike. On all other stadium surfaces covered with synthetic flooring, our Rekortan M shines in Chili Red.
All areas were refurbished using the re-topping process. To do so, we technically and cosmetically restored used and worn synthetic surfaces completely. This is an extremely economical and sustainable solution when renovating sports facilities since the existing elastic substructures remain in place, rather than being disposed of.
In addition to renewed surfaces, our high-precision system for professional performance diagnostics – Polytan SMART – was installed at the Campo Scuola Cosenza. It is primarily used in classic running disciplines in athletics and can be used to optimise performance, thanks to its digital diagnostic technology. Polytan SMART can be integrated in both new and existing sports facilities. Once installed, it can be used to take precise measurements at any time – regardless of the weather and for multiple athletes at once. This technology allows them to record their chronometric performance using a body sensor or an app on their smartphone. In Cosenza, it can not only be used for running sports, but also to measure run-ups in the long jump or when pole vaulting. This enables training sessions and performance to be precisely captured, documented and analysed.
Cosenza will be the first sports facility in southern Italy to be equipped with this technology, a fact that not only fills Mayor Franz Caruso with pride: “Once approved for competition at national level, Cosenza can call itself one of the few cities to have such a state-of-the-art facility, second to none in the entire mid-south.” Competitions can then also be held here at national level.
