Ah the end of summer… the departure of the tourists, the return of cooler nights and Ligue 1. So many reasons to appreciate this month of September, except for the pitch of the Vélodrome stadium. After a summer of being changed, then pampered under the blazing sun, she’s back in business. With three Olympique de Marseille matches already played at home, classics, but also with new gladiators to which she is less accustomed: the rugby players for the 2023 World Cup.
It’s nothing to say that life has been much less easy for the twigs at the Vélodrome stadium since the start of the World Cup, and the two matches between England against Argentina, and the Springboks against Scotland. Ask her cousin at the Pierre Mauroy stadium, who suffered dearly under the weight of the scrums of the XV of France and the Uruguayans, during the victory of the Blues (27-12) Thursday evening in Lille. To the point of seeing strips of several centimeters lifting under the crampons.
Hybrid lawn and doubled number of gardeners
Scenes which would, without doubt, have given Martin d’Argenlieu, general manager of the Orange Vélodrome, a cold sweat if they had taken place in Marseille. But the very nature of grass should prevent him from having nightmares:
This is a hybrid lawn, the best of what is available. With natural grass on which synthetic grass is dotted. The blades of synthetic turf are inserted to a depth of 18 centimeters in order to have an ultra-high-performance and resistant pitch,” he lists.
But faced with the multiplication of matches, and the diversity of activities, the stadium has more than doubled its number of gardeners responsible for looking after “the most precious asset of the Vélodrome stadium”: its lawn. With daily maintenance that begins immediately after the final whistle of a match for the start of mowing. Not very practical when we want to record our match debrief videos, but the pitch can’t wait. She who is “watched like milk on fire”, according to Martin d’Argenlieu.
The blessing of Pope Francis?
As for OM, who return to the Vélodrome stadium this Sunday (5 p.m.) for their match against Toulouse, there are no particular concerns. The lawn maintenance schedule is in any case developed with the club’s “greenkeeper”, a person responsible for monitoring the quality of the pitch.
The salvation of the pitch of the Vélodrome stadium, before the last three rugby matches in October, could also come from a divine force, with the next mass of Pope Francis on September 23 in front of 60,000 faithful gathered at the Vélodrome stadium. “We can expect anything, from him blessing the stadium and its lawn, to saying “Go OM””, warns Frédéric, in charge of digital communications for the diocese of Marseille and host of page (formerly Twitter) “Curé de l’Ohème”. “An exceptional event which brings together my two passions: OM and faith,” he looks forward to, but for which the lawn will be entirely protected. “Otherwise OM would not have been very happy,” he believes.
Indeed, the lawn of the Vélodrome stadium will be covered with “very specific honeycomb protective plates, which are ventilated to let the lawn breathe,” warns Martin d’Argenlieu. For whom the possible blessing of the Pope did not necessarily favor the regrowth of the lawn, “but will bring luck to OM”, he hopes. Because at the Vélodrome, Olympique de Marseille always remains the priority.