A new whitewater course in Épinal!
July 3, 2022: a key date for Hydrostadium and the Communauté d'Agglomération d'Epinal! Indeed, the Épinal whitewater course, whose project began in 2019, was officially inaugurated, helping to boost the area’s tourism development.
A unique and multifunctional water sports facility
The Épinal whitewater course is a unique project extending over a 200 m-long and 10 m-wide course, suitable both for introducing people to canoeing and kayaking and for hosting national and international competitions, thanks to the use of Omniflots® mobile obstacles patented by Hydrostadium. Other sports and leisure activities are also available: rafting, tubing and surfing.
This new facility was also partially designed in collaboration with the Vosges firefighters, to host training sessions on drowning and flood risks. (Hydrostadium has filed a patent for this type of design)
Preserved biodiversity and optimized energy consumption
One of the whitewater course’s distinctive features? It is equipped with a pumping station comprising three 4 m-diameter Archimedes screws, which supply the course with water directly from the Moselle! With three different flow rates depending on users’ skill levels (from 4 to 12 m³/s), this system consumes less energy than a conventional pumping system, while facilitating fish passage.
The Épinal whitewater course in pictures!
Discover this new sports facility at the port of Épinal: L'hebdo: Discovering the new Natur'O base in Épinal (vosgestelevision.tv)
- 00:00 to 05:18 = A multi-activity hub centered around water
- 07:14 to 10:17 = A whitewater course for everyone: beginner and athlete canoeists and kayakers
- 12:56 to 16:21 = A training and practice facility for firefighters
A few images from the inauguration at 01:30 in the Vosges Télévision report: En bref (vosgestelevision.tv)
