Reducing the cost of national pride

Given the stellar costs of the proposed National Stadium (recently it has been put at £1 billion), the Canadian city of Edmonton seems to be giving pretty good value for the cost of building a track for the IAAF World Championships next year.

The new venue, which will cost $9.13 million, will contain an inner field suitable for soccer, hockey and rugby with a 400 metre Mondo track around the perimeter. Beside the main field, the builders will provide an artificial pitch with a 135 metre warm-up runway, while an accompanying indoor facility will include classroom and aerobic space alongside weight-training areas. We could build 100 of these for one National Stadium.