Athletic Park, Wellington
1971 Lions Tour of New Zealand
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| Location | Newtown, Wellington, New Zealand |
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| Coordinates | 41°19′2″S 174°46′37″E / 41.31722°S 174.77694°ECoordinates: 41°19′2″S 174°46′37″E / 41.31722°S 174.77694°E |
| Owner | Athletic Park Company (1896–1908) Wellington Rugby Union (1908–1999) |
| Capacity | 800 (1898) 1,100 (1902) 5,700 (1928) 39,000 (1950–1999) |
| Surface | Grass |
| Opened | 6 April 1896 |
| Closed | 10 October 1999 |
Athletic Park was a sports ground used mostly for rugby matches in Wellington, New Zealand. The ground was also the inaugural home of New Zealand's principal knockout football tournament, the Chatham Cup (first held in 1923).
It has now been demolished and replaced with a retirement village. It was famous for a very steep grandstand (the Millard Stand) which used to sway a little in the regular strong winds that Wellington is famous for. The stand was unsafe as Wellington is very susceptible to earthquakes.
Athletic Park was an open park overlooking the Cook Strait and Pacific Ocean and was exposed to strong winds – most famously the 1961 All Black Test against France which was played in hurricane-force winds.
Throughout the 1980s several proposals were made to modernise the grounds, but instead a decision was made to build a new stadium. Several alternatives were proposed, including a new stadium in Porirua, revamping the Basin Reserve or Fraser Park in Hutt Valley, and the ultimately successful proposal to build a stadium on unused railway land near the Wellington Railway Station. In 1999 Athletic Park was closed and replaced by Westpac Stadium, referred to by some as "The Cake Tin", which sits directly behind the Wellington Railway Station this being extremely popular with supporters coming from Porirua, and the Hutt Valley.
Regardless of Westpac Stadium's location to public transport and modern features, it has lacked the atmosphere and intensity that Athletic Park had. This could be due to Athletic Park being Rugby specific, which brought spectators close to the action. Westpac Stadium's flaw of attempting to be both a cricket stadium and rugby stadium has led to dwindling numbers of supporters showing up to rectangular sport in Wellington.
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