By utilizing repurposed rubber from end-of-life tires manufacturer Apollo Tyres has created the playing surface for two new eco-friendly artificial soccer fields located in Chennai and Pune, India.
Each field measures 160 x 90ft and uses around 1,500 shredded tires to create 7,500kg of crumb rubber which is used for the playing surface. This layer results in a safer, higher quality playing surface. By reusing the discarded tires Apollo hopes to encourage the next generation of upcoming talent.
To date, the tire maker has produced 11 venues which consist of 20 operational fields located in both the UK and India. Apollo plans to build four more fields in 2022.
The first ‘Go The Distance’ field was opened near to the North Stand of Manchester United Football Club’s Old Trafford stadium. Apollo Tyres is also a partner of the football club.
“Apollo Tyres as a company is committed to sustainability. These pitches created using repurposed rubber from our own tires, are one of the many initiatives that we are taking toward our Sustainability Journey,” commented Satish Sharma, president, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa, Apollo Tyres.
“These Go The Distance pitches have a two-fold objective toward a sustainable future, [creating] access to sports for youth from the local communities, where they can test out and hone their sporting skills.”
