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Royal Athletic Park is a multi-purpose, fully lit stadium in Victoria, British Columbia. It is primarily used for baseball, soccer, softball and football, but also hosts special events, such as the annual Great Canadian Beer Festival and Rifflandia Music Festival. It is approximately a ten-minute walk from the city centre. When in use as a baseball stadium for Victoria HarbourCats games,〔(Victoria HarbourCats: Headlines )〕 it is known as Sports Traders Diamond at Royal Athletic Park. ==History== In 1907 the burgeoning summer athletic teams did not have enough facilities for senior teams with paid attendances. Baseball in particular was challenged to find available dates at Oak Bay Grounds to operate due to a preference for lacrosse.〔British Colonist April 14, 1907 Available:http://www.britishcolonist.ca〕 Subsequently the supporters of Canada's national game, lacrosse, at a meeting chaired by BC Premier McBride formed the Royal Victoria Athletic Association on March 26, 1908,〔British Colonist March 27, 1908 Available:http://www.britishcolonist.ca〕 and a senior lacrosse team was founded to enable the best intermediate (Under 21) players to play in the British Columbia Amateur Lacrosse Association (BCALA) League. The Oak Bay Grounds were put under the management of the senior baseball team〔British Colonist April 9, 1908 Available:http://www.britishcolonist.ca〕 and then later the Rugby Football Club.〔British Colonist Oct 24, 1908 Available:http://www.britishcolonist.ca〕 The lacrosse group, later shortened to the Royal Athletic Association, issued shares at $25 each with deposits of 10% and biannual calls of 10% to raise $25,000 for improvements to the grounds. The lease was signed for 5 acres at the corner of Cook and Pembroke Streets for the grounds.〔〔British Colonist March 28, 1908 Available:http://www.britishcolonist.ca〕 Contracts had been let by May 12, 1908 and $4,000 from the share offering and gate receipts was spent by June on the construction of a perimeter fence, 2 ticket offices, an inner fence, grandstand, and carriage parking area. The inner fence enclosed the 500 ft x 285 ft (152m x 87m) playing field. The grandstand on the south side of the playing field was 150 ft long x 25 ft deep with 10 rows of seats for more than 1000 spectators. Beneath the grandstand were dressing rooms and concessions.〔British Colonist May 12, 1908 Available:http://www.britishcolonist.ca〕 The original layout of the field and grandstand was essentially the same as today's; however based on maps used in advertising〔British Colonist June 6, 1908 Available:http://www.britishcolonist.ca〕 the original field also included half of the city block to the west between Quadra and Vancouver Streets. The carriage parking was on the east side off Cook Street. The Victoria West Athletic Association, James Bay Athletic Association, and Central Lacrosse Club as well as others with intermediate lacrosse teams also played at the Royal Athletic Association grounds. Field lacrosse was to be the primary sport at the grounds. The facility was a multi-sport community asset from the beginning as cricket, football (Canadian, Rugby, and Association codes), field sports, boxing, other sports, the circus, fireworks, theatre, and other events were allowed to rent the facility.〔〔 Due to field shortages, the Victoria and District Football Association (soccer) started renting RAP in September 1908 as the Royal Athletic Association’s main winter tenant for district and inter-community league games.〔British Colonist September 11, 1908 Available:http://www.britishcolonist.ca〕〔British Colonist October 24, 1908 Available:http://www.britishcolonist.ca〕 The first soccer game played was at 3pm September 12, 1908 between Victoria West and Fifth Regiment, Victoria West won 10-0.〔British Colonist September 13, 1908 p17 of 40 Available:http://www.britishcolonist.ca〕 The first recorded baseball game was an exhibition on June 27, 1908 between the Chicago Ladies’ Baseball Club and Rendell’s Team on June 27, 1908.〔British Colonist June 23, 1908 p9 of 18 Available:http://www.britishcolonist.ca〕 In the mid-1920s RAP became home to amateur baseball with the construction of the Crystal Gardens on the main Victoria baseball grounds.〔(The Beginning of Baseball - Victoria Baseball History 1849 - 1921 )〕 The first mention of Royal Athletic Park in the British Colonist (which later merged with the Victoria Times to become the Victoria Times Colonist) is on May 21, 1908. It is an advertisement for an inter-provincial championship lacrosse game against a Vancouver side on May 25, 1908 at the new Royal Athletic Park.〔British Colonist May 21, 1908 available at: http://britishcolonist.ca/〕 Many advertisements right from the start emphasize its location less than 1-1/2 mile from downtown, still a major feature of the facility's popularity among spectators. The land was purchased by the city in 1925 from the Royal Athletic Association and the park underwent a major restoration in 1967 after a large fire in 1964 burned the original grandstands.〔(Royal Athletic Park | Victoria )〕 The park has been the home to many different sports teams, notably including the Victoria Rebels (CJFL 1985-2008), Victoria Athletics (Western International League 1946-1954)〔(Victoria Baseball History 1946 - 2008 )〕 and Victoria United (Pacific Coast Soccer League 1995-2012). From 1 July to 11 July 2007, Royal Athletic Park was one of six host venues for the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=FIFA - Royal Athletic Park )〕 The stadium hosted Group F, and also featured Japan vs Czech Republic in a Round of Sixteen game. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Royal Athletic Park」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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