Velodrome update: New complex to host cycling tournament this year

One development we’re looking forward to in the city is the new multi-sport complex with a velodrome in Midtown. As much as we love all the residential that’s in development, we want to see more activities and places for families.

The multi-sport complex will be completed at the Tolan Playfield at I-75 and Mack. Construction will start soon. How soon? They now have a good deadline to work toward.

According to a press release, USA Cycling just chose the Detroit Fitness Foundation to host the 2017 U.S. Cycling Madison National Championships at the new complex, which is set to open by fall. The women’s and men’s competitions will take place October 19 - 21, 2017 at the to-be built 64,000-square-foot location.

The cycling velodrome will have a steep, oval track and will meet hosting facility requirements. The indoor complex will also include run/walk/skating lanes, fitness class areas, and a café.

Dale Hughes is leading the design and build of the complex, which will be an air dome structure. It will house the second permanent indoor cycling velodrome in the United States. Hughes, a lifetime resident of Metro Detroit, has designed and built more than 20 velodromes worldwide, including the 1996 Olympic Velodrome in Atlanta and the 2015 Pan Am Games Velodrome in Toronto.

Tolan Playfield was renamed in 1968 to honor Thomas Edward Tolan, Cass Tech graduate, two-time Olympic Gold Medalist, and the first African American man deemed the “World’s Fastest Human.”