Second Largest Stadium in the World Opts for High Performance Fieldturf

Installation at Salt Lake Stadium in India Underway

KOLKATA, INDIA (April 22, 2009) – The world’s second largest stadium by capacity has selected FieldTurf artificial grass. Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata, India chose 90,000 square feet of FieldTurf for its soccer field. The FieldTurf installation is currently underway. The world’s top high profile venues continue to side with the synthetic turf innovation and performance that has become synonymous with FieldTurf.

“We are delighted that this renowned stadium has selected our product,” said FieldTurf CEO Joe Fields. “FieldTurf is the world leader in innovative turf products and we have always strived towards producing high quality products with long-term safety testing to ensure maximum athlete performance. We look forward to seeing our product underfoot of some of the best athletes in the world.”

“This is the first football stadium in India to use next-generation artificial grass”, says Anil Kumar, Director of FieldTurf Tarkett India. “Previously, the same product (FieldTurf) has been installed over 3 years ago at Chowgule College in Goa and is in regular, extensive use. After very positive response from players, coaches, administrators and owners, the prestigious Salt Lake stadium also decided to adopt the highly proven FieldTurf system. Our exclusive distributors for West Bengal and Assam – Thar Marbles – played a key role in winning this deal.”

FieldTurf is used by some of the best clubs like Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool etc., for their practice fields.

Salt Lake Stadium hosts the home games of local clubs Mohun Bagan AC, East Bengal FC, and Mohammedan SC - three of the big clubs in Indian football. Many of the home games of the India national football team are also played in Salt Lake, in addition to many important games in major stages of national tournaments. The engineered FieldTurf surface is the ideal solution for a venue that hosts multi-purpose events and world class tournaments.

Mr. Ravi Kant Kasat, of Thar marbles said, “We will be installing it with pre-tufted white fibre for the perimeter and centre lines. We expect to complete the entire sub-base, drainage and turf installation in about 100 days. It will be a great asset to Indian football now and in the future.”

In addition to the last two U20 World Cups, other recent matches of note on FieldTurf include the Euro 2008 qualifier between Russia and England at Luzhniki Stadium in Russia, the 2008 Major League Soccer (MLS) All-Star game, the 2010 World Cup qualifier between Costa Rica and El Salvador, UEFA Cup Qualifiers, along with pivotal MLS and United Soccer League (USL) championship games, among many others.

FieldTurf offers industry leading engineering and manufacturing resources, unparalleled leasing and financing capabilities, and leads the synthetic turf industry with regard to setting higher environmental standards. FieldTurf is the global market leader in terms of synthetic sports fields with over 3000 fields installed. Additionally, FieldTurf has attained over 12,000 satisfied customers in high quality pet, residential, commercial and municipal landscaping solutions, playground surfacing, and has a complete range of golf and tennis products. FieldTurf synthetic turf customers enjoy the benefits of significantly reduced water consumption, the elimination of fertilizer and pesticides, superior durability and drainage and a product that looks and feels real. The positive environmental impact of FieldTurf provides the added benefit of LEED building contributions.

FieldTurf is part of Tarkett Sports, a Division of the Tarkett Group. Tarkett Sports is the largest entity in the sports and landscape surfacing industries. Included within the Tarkett Sports portfolio is an impressive range of performance sports flooring products. This product range includes: synthetic and hardwood basketball; volleyball and gymnasium flooring; squash and racquetball courts; floor protection and covering systems; weight room flooring; and high performance indoor and outdoor running tracks, featuring Beynon track surfaces. All Tarkett Sports surfaces are developed, produced and installed with a concentration on sustainability and a commitment to protecting the environment, providing additional LEED contribution opportunities for customers. The company calls this focus on sustainability and the environment 'Environmental Intelligence' and all company personnel strive to exemplify this philosophy in all aspects of the business.

Contact:
Anil Kumar
Director, FieldTurf Tarkett India
(Great Sports Infra)
+91 98490 46060
Email: info@fieldturfindia.com
www.fieldturf.com
www.fieldturfindia.com