The highest altitude ProPlay® field completed in Bolivia

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The highest altitude ProPlay® field, located in Estadio Municipal Villa Ingenio in the municipality of El Alto in Bolivia, is completed. El Alto is the highest major metropolis in the world, with an average elevation of 4,150 m. It makes this field the highest altitude FIFA Quality Pro certified field in the world. It is also the first synthetic turf field with a horizontal drainage system in Bolivia, using the
ProPlay®-Sport23D shock pad with an outstanding drainage capacity.

El Alto (Spanish for “The Heights”) is the second-largest and youngest city in Bolivia, located adjacent to La Paz in Pedro Domingo Murillo Province on the Altiplano highlands. Today, El Alto is one of Bolivia’s fastest-growing urban centers, with a population of 974,754 in 2011.

Estadio Municipal Villa Ingenio is the first modern stadium in Bolivia and has a capacity of 25,000 spectators. The Government allocated 55.8 million Bolivians for the construction which is about 6.6 million Euros. The stadium cover 22.850 square meters so it has enough room for other sports. This mainly benefits the children and young people of the city, so they have a place for training and entertainment.

The municipality of El Alto were highly satisfied with the time of installation. Temperatures in El Alto vary between -17ºC and 18ºC which can make the installation a challenge. This however was no problem for the professional installation crew who completed the installation in just two weeks. ProPlay® panels are puzzle shaped and therefore easy to install during all weather conditions.

The stadium was officially inaugurated by Bolivian President Evo Morales in Villa Ingenio. It was premiered by the teams of ‘Bolívar’ and ‘The Strongest’ in a classic ‘paceño’. “Brothers and sisters, a small gift to the people of El Alto, to that rebellious people, rebellious not only for the demands of the people of El Alto, but also for the people of La Paz and fundamentally for the Bolivian people,” the President said after giving the inaugural kick. “The people of El Alto from the first moment guaranteed us the democratic cultural revolution with their conscience, with their vote and therefore fulfilling our responsibilities to recognize with this kind of works the people of El Alto,” he said.

The realization of the high quality field was a collaboration between Greenfields (who provided the high quality synthetic turf) and Schmitz Foam Products B.V. (who provided the high performance ProPlay® shock and drainage pad). The collaboration resulted in this world-class synthetic turf FIFA Quality Pro certified system with excellent playing characteristics and high durability.

Want to see ProPlay® with your own eyes? Request a sample via www.schmitzfoam.com/contact.