In what it is claimed is just the second of its kind in the world, the multi-sports complex will provide facilities for 40 different sport disciplines, ranging from traditional Olympic sports, such as badminton and boxing, to more unusual sports, like underwater hockey and rugby.

After seven years of planning and preparation the complex began construction last year, following Istanbul's failed bid to host the 2020 Olympic and Paralympics Games

It is expected to be completed in January 2015 and, once finished, will provide Turkey with its largest sports performance centre at 105,000 metres squared, or 10.5 hectares.

The Gloria Sports Arena will feature two football pitches and three training pitches with accommodation overlooking the action ©Gloria


The arena will have the capacity to host 600 athletes a day with 100 rooms being built to accommodate to the needs and wants of these athletes.

The €54 million (£44.5 million/$74.5 million) complex is a further expansion into the tourism sector by Turkish construction company Özaltın Holding, owner of the Gloria Hotel and Resorts chain, which currently consists of three resorts across Belek, which is currently hosting the SportAccord International Convention.

These resorts were first established in 1997 with the construction of the Gloria Golf Resort, followed shortly by the Gloria Verde Resort in 2001 and Gloria Serenity Resort in 2007.

The arena is being managed by Elif Özaltın, granddaughter of Özaltın Holding founder, Nuri Özaltın.

Elif Özdemir, granddaughter of Özdemir Holding founder Nuri Özdemir, is the general manager of the Gloria Sports Arena ©Gloria


The complex expects to attract individual athletes, groups and teams with Germany's national swimming team already contracted to hold their training camps at the arena for the next three years.

The sports arena will consist of a 6,800 square metre indoor complex, with a multi-purpose main hall that can be divided into four fields, a 35,000 square metre outdoor complex with a 1,600 capacity stadium, and a 5,800 square metre aquatic facility.

A rehabilitation facility will also be on site, alongside a 1,000m2 space dedicated to sport science and modern physiotherapy.

As the completion date for the complex draws ever closer, organisers have begun scheduling future events and competitions to be held at the arena with the Gloria World Open, a prize dance competition sanctioned by the World Dance Sport Federation, set to take place on March 21 and 22 next year.
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