The opening of the local season game scheduled for Saturday at 16h at the Olympic Stadium against Toronto, will be played only if no snowfall or ice is expected during the event. The final decision will be taken twenty-four hours before kickoff.
Why is this condition? Just because the back of the roof of the stadium is still not resolved, more than 14 years after the tearing of the canvas occurred in January 1999!
Remember, after this incredible case, the main enclosure was closed between December 1 and March 31 for 10 long years.
Then, in February 2009, the Impact has received permission to play a game of international championship at Olympic Stadium. The Building Board of Quebec and the Montreal Fire Department nevertheless posed requirements precipitation and accumulation of snow and ice on the roof, the suspension cables and the Tower.
Needless to say, if the clash on Saturday was postponed due to snow, the new will tour America. The purpose of a roof is to allow the holding of matches in winter, not cause them off!
After the sad episode of "Pastagate" Montreal appear again very badly. Just imagine the reaction of the supporters of 3000 expected to match Toronto FC ...
"We would be the laughing stock, says Richard Legendre, vice president of Impact. A risk like that should not exist. Should resolve this issue. Montreal and Quebec need a facility like the Olympic Stadium used 12 months a year. "
Last year, the Impact began its home schedule on March 17 at Olympic Stadium in front of 60,000 spectators. The weather cooperated. Richard Legendre is confident that this will be the case again Saturday.
The Quebec government is aware that the uncertainty about the roof of the Olympic Stadium has to stop.
"We are discussing the issue," says Jean-François Lisée, Minister responsible for the Montreal region. In his view, a decision should be made before the summer holidays.
Politically, the decision to invest tens of millions in the replacement of the Stadium roof is risky. When the student crisis is slowly and where large infrastructure projects are delayed for lack of funds, this expenditure could create a stir.
This question has challenged Jean-François Lisée. But a visit to the Olympic Park earlier this winter reassured. "I was struck by the number of projects planned for the use of the stadium, he said. Creativity has never been present. And enthusiasm of the management team is refreshing. "
An idea seems to have particularly attracted the Minister Lisée: to create television studios and film in the great outdoors under the bleachers. Montreal is a shortage at this level, he says.
Heurtel David, President of the Olympic Park, says that "serious discussions" are underway with producers.
"It's a vein that wants to develop, he said. Of shootings have taken place at the Stadium, including%
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