The High Performance Rugby Center (CARR), located inside Mahuida Park in La Reina, will host the World Rugby U20 Challenger Cup Santiago 2026. The tournament, which kicks off this Friday, will feature the youth Cóndores as the protagonists. At 7 p.m., Chile will host Hong Kong China. That day will also feature the matches Romania vs. Brazil, Namibia vs. Canada, and Belgium vs. Portugal.
To receive the competition, the venue is undergoing a remodeling process that includes new grandstands and sports lighting. In later stages, a second pitch and a four-story building will be built.
Currently, the works are focused on the construction of the Andes grandstand and the installation of the lighting system. "This is a project with several stages. The first stage was the synthetic pitch, which was completed in 2023, with an investment of around 1.2 billion pesos," explains Davor Stancic-Rokotov, director of Chile Rugby, to El Deportivo.
Synthetic turf sports pitches authorized for rugby are regulated and certified by World Rugby (Regulation 22). The elements that make up this system are a shockpad, or elastic base, for impact absorption, on which synthetic grass fibers are installed, with performance and stabilization infills between the fibers.
In the case of the Chile Rugby pitch, a 20mm-thick shockpad was installed, well above the required minimum (12mm), along with grass fibers…
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The High Performance Rugby Center (CARR), located inside Parque Mahuida in La Reina, will host the World Rugby Challenger Cup U20 Santiago 2026. The tournament, which kicks off this Friday, will feature the youth Cóndores as protagonists. At 7:00 PM, Chile will host Hong Kong China. That day will also feature the matches Romania vs. Brazil, Namibia vs. Canada, and Belgium vs. Portugal. To host the competition, the venue is undergoing a remodeling process that includes new grandstands and sports lighting. In later stages, a second pitch and a four-story building will be built. Currently, the works are focused on the construction of the Andes grandstand and the installation of the lighting system. "This is a project with several stages. The first stage was the synthetic pitch, which was completed in 2023, with an investment of around 1.2 billion pesos," explains Davor Stancic-Rokotov, director of Chile Rugby, to El Deportivo. Synthetic turf sports pitches authorized for rugby are regulated and certified by World Rugby (Regulation 22). The elements that make up this system are a shockpad, or elastic base, for impact absorption, on which synthetic grass fibers are installed, with performance and stabilization infill between the fibers. In the case of the Chile Rugby pitch, a 20mm-thick shockpad was installed, well above the required minimum (12mm), 60mm-long synthetic grass fibers, and rubber and silica sand infill. One of the main advantages of synthetic turf pitches is the greater use and rotation they allow compared to natural grass pitches. The pitch, with official dimensions of 68x100m, reaches 10,764 m2 including in-goals and safety overrun. The project has stayed on schedule. "The second stage is the one we are executing right now, with progress close to 80%. This is the Andes grandstand and the sports lighting that will allow nighttime matches to be broadcast on television. The lighting technology is brought from the United States. This stage involves an investment of 1.5 billion, which was financed by the Regional Government, in which the support of Claudio Orrego has been very important," details Stancic-Rokotov. The new lighting conditions will be used during the World Rugby U20 Challenger 2026. The CARR will host the participating delegations. More improvementsThe remodeling is not limited to the works that will be available for the competition. There are two more stages to expand the facilities of the Parque Mahuida venue. The third stage corresponds to a second playing field, which will be located in the area where the municipal pitch currently stands. The venue will remain public, but the Federation will have usage rights during certain hours. "That consists of a synthetic rugby-football pitch, rekortan athletics tracks, and lighting for training. That involves an investment of 1.2 billion and should be put out to tender within the next two to four weeks," explains Stancic-Rokotov. The fourth stage corresponds to the Pacific grandstand project. In that area, the construction of a four-story building is planned, which will incorporate spaces linked to sports operations and the holding of activities at the venue. The design includes broadcast booths, event halls, spaces for technical teams, cafeterias and dining rooms, among other facilities. The initiative is in the approval process with the National Sports Institute (IND), while the funds for its execution have already been secured with the Government. "It is a very interesting project. That investment is close to 4.8 billion pesos," emphasizes Stancic-Rokotov. With the various stages, the investment allocated to the CARR increases progressively. The roughly 1.2 billion pesos for the 2023 synthetic pitch are joined by the 1.5 billion of the second stage currently under execution. Then there is the second pitch, with another 1.2 billion, and finally the Pacific grandstand project, whose investment is estimated at 4.8 billion. All of this also means an increase in the venue's capacity. "We go from 1,200 to 2,600. With the Pacific stand we reach close to 5,000," reveals the director. The improvements made to the High Performance Center will allow the venue to meet the standards required by World Rugby to host an international competition of this magnitude, in addition to strengthening the infrastructure available for the various national teams and Chile Rugby's development programs. The infrastructure aims to expand the use of the CARR beyond the Cóndores. A few weeks ago, the president of Chile Rugby, Cristián Rudloff, stated that the venue will be dedicated to the different categories and programs of the sport. "This is not work only for the adult national teams, but for all Chilean rugby and especially for the little ones: the boys and girls who today dream of representing Chile at the highest sporting level," he said. NEWSLETTEREl DeportivoMonday, 8:45 AMA special selection with coverage and analysis of the most important sporting events of the weekend, by the Sports team of La Tercera. By subscribing you are accepting the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policies of La Tercera.