CONSHOHOCKEN, Pa., Dec. 11, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Two facilities with tracks made by Mondo , the global leader in the track and field , indoor sport and contract flooring markets, have been honored for excellence in sports construction by the American Sports Builders Association . The facilities are the Birmingham CrossPlex, which won in the Distinguished Track Facilities: Indoor Track Facility category, and Icahn Stadium, which won in the Distinguished Track Facilities: Outdoor Track Facility category.
In addition, within each category, one facility was chosen from among all winning entries to represent the best of athletic facility construction. The Birmingham CrossPlex won Indoor Track Facility of the Year, and Icahn Stadium won Outdoor Track Facility of the Year.
An indoor track and field venue, natatorium and meeting space, the Birmingham (Ala.) CrossPlex features a Mondo hydraulic banked track with a state-of-the art Mondotrack surface.
The six-lane, 200-meter track system has two curved track sections that can be banked for high-speed running events. A hydraulic system raises and lowers the running surface; the process can be completed in a few minutes.
The Mondo hydraulic track at the CrossPlex is one of only six in the United States and 13 in the world. It can be set at any intermediate position between flat and fully raised, so it can be used for a wide range of events and by athletes with different skill levels. When the curved sections are lowered, the synthetic surface of the track is flush with the surrounding surfaces, so those surfaces can be used for other sports or activities. Mondo makes the world's only hydraulic banked 200-meter indoor competition track system.
Mondotrack was the competition track of the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2012 London Olympics where three world records, four Olympic records, 64 national records, and a multitude of personal and season bests were set on the track.
Icahn Stadium at Randall's Island in New York is home to a blue, eight-lane, 400-meter Mondo Super X Performance track. The Stadium was the first athletic facility in the United States to receive the prestigious Class 1 certification by the International Association of Athletics Federations, so it meets the precise quality and performance requirements laid down by the IAAF, including those for synthetic track surfaces. Only four venues in the U.S. and 103 internationally are IAAF Class 1 certified.
The world's top track for more than 30 years, the renowned Super X Performance track is recognized around the world as one of the fastest, most durable and environmentally safest tracks available. It is installed at more than 1,100 venues globally and was the track of eight Olympic Games through 2004.
ASBA, of which Mondo is a member, is the national organization for builders, designers and suppliers of materials for athletic facilities. Annual awards are presented to facilities built by ASBA members that best exemplify construction excellence. The 2013 awards were presented at an awards dinner in San Antonio last Friday during the annual ASBA Technical Meeting. A panel of ASBA members anonymously judged entries. Projects were scored individually based on considerations such as layout and design, site work, drainage, base construction, surface, amenities, innovation and overall impression. Winning entries' cumulative scores met or exceeded the standard.
About Mondo
Mondo is the global leader in the track and field , indoor sport and contract flooring markets, manufacturing flooring surfaces for virtually every application. More than 1,100 Mondo tracks and millions of square feet of the company's high-performance athletic surfaces are installed worldwide.
An official supplier of athletic tracks for the past 10 Olympic Games, Mondo also is the official supplier or official sponsor of more than 100 sports federations and associations.
A family-owned business since its founding in 1948, the company sells its products in more than 196 countries through Mondo-owned manufacturing companies in Italy, Luxembourg, Spain and China. For news updates, the latest on Mondo products, events and flooring installations, visit mondoworldwide.com and like Mondotrack's Facebook page and Mondo America's Facebook page .
Mondo is a registered trademark of Mondo.
Editorial Contact: Glynis Gibson Gibson Communications, Inc. 773.278.7700
