EUGENE, Ore. (NEXSTAR) – One look at Hayward Field is all it takes to get that ‘wow’ factor.
“What we were able to do with this is, really, what we describe as ‘athlete-centered design,'” said Todd Van Horne, Nike’s creative director. “And what we mean by that is that this wasn’t just a theater or a stadium that was just going to be built and just gonna be occupied on gameday. I think, Coach, from the start challenged us to make this active every single day of the week, every single moment of the day you can train day and night.”
On its nine-lane track, or its six-lane indoor track. There are facilities for training and sports medicine. There is even a barbershop! The development team literally traveled the world for ideas, visiting venues across the United States, Canada and Europe.
“And that energy is something that we talked about from the very beginning,” said Jeff Yrazabal, an architect with SRG Partnership. “And how can we create that theater for track and field? It benefits the athletes by connecting that energy to them throughout the facility.”
It is a facility with 12,650 permanent seats that can be expanded to double that amount (25,000). And it contains an asymmetrical bowl that puts the majority of those fans at the finish line.
“That’s unlike any other facility in the world,” said Yrazabal. “You see premium experiences for a select few in some venues. Here, every single person at Hayward Field is gonna have an awesome experience.”
