Inauguration of the Sportacademy Foundation sports complex

A project born out of love for sport, the local area and sustainability. Sunday, 15 October saw the inauguration of the sports complex requested by the Sportacademy Foundation, which was created by a dozen associations from the Mendrisiotto and Lower Ceresio regions who joined forces to create new facilities for the training of young athletes in various disciplines. USI is one of the project partners. The wood used for the construction was salvaged from the Library of the USI Academy of Architecture in Mendrisio, dismantled a few years ago.

The wood of the Academy's Library has found a third life: after first being the Aula Magna and then the Library, it has recently been transformed into the beating heart of a functional, beautiful, inexpensive and environmentally-friendly sports centre where numerous disciplines will be practised, including artistic gymnastics, climbing and martial arts. The project was made possible thanks to many volunteers, parents and benefactors. It was an initiative of private individuals with the support of both local municipalities and the state.

The initiative was born out of the need to find a new infrastructure for practising sport and the idea of a USI alumnus architect who knew that the Library of the Academy of Architecture would soon be decommissioned (https://www.usi.ch/it/feeds/13220). Otto Krausbeck, who arrived in 1996 from Argentina thanks to a scholarship from the Friends of the Academy, finished his studies at USI and decided to stay in Mendrisiotto. He, as well as other professionals, worked for free on the project and the construction.