Glasgow 2014 has been widely praised for its smooth preparation for the Commonwealth Games, but one area that has raised concern is the plan to convert Hampden Park, the city's 52,063 capacity football stadium, into a temporary track and field venue that will host athletic events and the Closing Ceremony.

The installation of a temporary track and field facility is challenging as it means the level of Hampden's playing field must be raised by 1.9 metres.

The first major warning came from independent public spending watchdog Audit Scotland in March who said there is a: "risk of increased costs is greater if the development is delayed".

The warning was repeated last month by Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) Coordination Commission chairman Bruce Robertson, who said: "is a project that will take some time".

But Grevemberg admitted that the warnings came as no great surprise to Glasgow 2014 and said they are still fully committed to the plan.

"It is a risk," he told insidethegames.

"As with every capital work project, it has risk.

"I wouldn't say it is exclusively a risk but what I will say is that it is a big project with lots of moving parts and it is pioneering in some respects.

"But we feel like we have the right approach by taking this on.

"It shows ambition and is a sustainable approach which is obviously very important to us.

"It is also an approach that we believe will leave a very positive marking the world of sport and on Glasgow.

"It is something we are taking very, very seriously.

"I think the real positive from the risk warnings was that they were not a surprise for us.


"We already knew the risks and we were able to talk about the risks.

"More importantly, we were able to show what we are doing to mitigate those risks and what we plan to do moving forward.

"From that standpoint, I think it is very fair that this has been identified and highlighted.

"We want people to know because this is a project for the whole of Glasgow and Scotland and we are all in it together.

"We are working with the local community, Hampden Park Limited, Queen's Park Football Club, Glasgow City Council and all of our contractors in terms of the management and engineering of the different propositions.

"So there really are a lot of groups trying to make this successful because it is critical.

"It is a big sport athletics, one of the biggest in the world, and we want to do it right.

"We are talking to the IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federations) on a regular basis and we are going to continue to review this as things as we go along."

Grevemberg added that the low risk associated with the other venues means that they are easily able to make Hampden Park their priority, since 70 per cent of the infrastructure is already in place and Glasgow City Council are involved in the majority of the work preparing for the Games.

"The other venues of the Games are well on track to be delivered because Glasgow City Council is doing such a fantastic job with them and that allows us, as an Organising Committee, to really concentrate on Hampden and make that a success," he said.

"Having great partners, like Glasgow City Council who are undertaking the other works, really helps us focus on this.

"It is a fair assessment to call it a risk but we are looking forward to taking it forward."

Contact the writer of this story at [email protected]


Related stories
April 2012: Glasgow 2014 on track but warned over security and Hampden Park