Short History

METU Stadium was completed in 1962 and served for athletics competitions in Ankara until 1975. Commonly known as "Devrim" and equipped with a 6-lane rubber track in 2016, the Stadium was prepared for athletics competitions in 2023 by marking/painting start-finish lines for all race distances by the Athletics Team.

Technical Details

The straight sections of the Stadium track, with one full lap being 400 meters, are exactly 100 meters each, while the curved sections on the inner lanes are also 100 meters apart. Due to the division of a 200-meter running track into straight and curved sections of 85m and 115m respectively in Olympic standard tracks, the unique structure of METU Stadium places it outside Olympic standards. Additionally, the curved part of the track being a half ellipse rather than a half circle is another characteristic that sets it apart. The lane width of 1.17 m and line widths of 5cm are some of the correct standard features of the stadium.

"Track Etiquette"

Contrary to popular belief, METU Stadium is not a picnic-chat area but a sports facility built for conducting athletic and other sporting activities. Although open to those not engaged in sports, it has certain rules, with priority given to those engaged in sports. Some of these rules include:

- Bicycles should not be ridden, animals should not be walked, and games should not be played on the running track.

- Walking should only be done on the outermost lane.

- The innermost lane should be used for fast-paced running.

In addition to the rules posted at the entrance of the Stadium, there are also unwritten rules known as "Track Etiquette" applicable to almost every stadium. Some of these include:

- The most important rule by far: run counter-clockwise. It may sound obvious, but many don't follow it.

- Awareness of other athletes: whether you are engaging in sports or not, when changing lanes, crossing over, slowing down, always look to the right, left, and behind, and do not cause running athletes to change their pace or lane.

- Do not stop on the track: The track is for those in motion. Even when resting, move off the track.