Inaugurado el Refugio de Entrenamiento en Altura en Naturlandia

Andorra, 5 November 2019. The Naturlandia 2000-metre High Performance Training Centre is now a reality. Yesterday it opened its doors and as of this weekend it will be in full-scale operation. As the Cònsol Major of Sant Julià de Lòria, Josep Miquel Vila explained, it has been built “to seek higher performance” and will allow the cross-country skiers Carola Vila and Irineu Esteve “to have an opportunity to improve” and “will also be an opportunity for other teams and federations to come”. In fact this new infrastructure is supported not only by of the Comú of Andorra la Vella, the Andorran Ski Federation (FAE) and Andbank, but also by the Andorran Olympic Committee (COA), which has already applied for funding from Olympic Solidarity. This will make it possible to extend the facility in the future. However, the President of the COA, Jaume Martí, pointed out “We’ll have to see how the federations of the country respond”. For example, the Andorran Cycling Federation (FAC) has already shown interest in doing a stage in the infrastructure.

The 150 square metre high performance shelter has capacity for up to seven people and has two bedrooms, a loving room with kitchen, bathroom and a gymnasium for altitude training. It should be remembered that the Comú restored a building that was already there and needed a budget of 50,000 euros, while the COA, the FAE and Andbank took charge of the interior. “The building only needed recycling, it didn’t cost a lot and everyone is satisfied”, Vila explained.

The FAE coach Joan Erola said “We’re happy and we were looking forward to it. It was something that we had been wanting for some time and it won’t just be good for us”. He added, “We’ve got the pistes just outside, it’ll be a really important tool for us and for other federations that want to come and do physical training here”.

Although officially the infrastructure will be 100% operational in a month, “We’ll start using it now with the cross-country skiers, we’ll stay up here training for three or four days this weekend”.

In Carola Vila’s words “It’s gone really well, we’ve got really good facilities that will give us a big boost in summer and winter, we can’t wait to get it going”. “We’ve always complained that we waste an hour and a half every day going up and down and this will mean that we can rest more and train morning, afternoon and evening, and at the level where we are that’s very important”. Esteban continued “We’ll be gaining in many ways because sometimes we train all day”. “We’ve got everything here, all the facilities in the world, this will make us train and eat better, and we’ll see if the results appear”, he concluded.