Trip on Medeu skating rink.

"The fantasy of the wind disfigures the stone,
The capricious hand of fate is unreliable.
The string of kilometers rings underfoot,
And mountain rivers cut centuries.
And in the morning, at the first splash of dawn,
When beauty opens the eyes,
We leave, we leave, driven by the wind,
Along dusty roads, along snowy ridges..."

Yuri Kukin. "Driven by the wind". August 8, 1967.

Weekend tours gorge Small Almaty.

Medeu sports complex, located at an altitude of 1691 meters above sea level, is located in mountain gorge of same name on Malaya Almatinka River, on northern slope of Zailiysky Alatau ridge, in Medeu district of Almaty. 
The complex was built between 1969 and 1972. Authors: architects V. Z. Katsev, A. S. Kainarbaev, I. G. Kosogova, chief designers S. B. Matveev, M. V. Plakhotnikov, Sh. M. Chelidze, engineers E. L. Lichtenstein, V. V. Vdovichenko and other specialists who took part in the creation of the architecture and construction of the skating rink.
For the creation of the high-mountain sports complex "Medeu" the team of designers and builders was awarded the USSR State Prize in 1975. The high-mountain winter sports complex "Medeu" is located in the tract of the same name, 18 kilometers from Almaty. In 1949, a place for the construction of the skating rink was chosen.
The skating rink first began to function in February 1951, the first high-mountain skating rink in the country, the operation of which depended on lower air temperatures (2 - 2.5 months a year). Clean mountain air, sun, water without salts and other impurities, used when pouring ice, provided the speed skaters with exceptionally high results.
The rink was opened on February 4, 1951 and on February 5, the skaters set the first record and subsequently, all records of the USSR and Kazakhstan were updated. The reconstructed rink opened in 1972 on the site of a rink with natural ice, which operated since February in 1951.
The area of ​​the ice field is 10,500 square meters, the length of the running tracks is 400 meters, the width is 15 meters, it allows to hold competitions on the rink in speed skating, bandy, figure skating. The multi-layer field is 2.3 meters thick and consists of 20 types of metal. It is completed by a reinforced concrete slab, in which 170 kilometers of pipes with a coolant are laid.
The capacity of the refrigeration units is capable of "keeping" the ice for 8 months a year, and the skating tracks - all year round. To illuminate the ice arena, 1,600 floodlights are installed on 8 masts. The mild climate of the Medeu tract, the optimal level of solar radiation, low atmospheric pressure, no wind, and the clean glacial water of the Malaya Almatinka River provide high-quality ice.
Medeu has earned a great sports reputation and world recognition. 112 world records in speed skating have been set at Medeu. The stadium stands have 10,500 seats. Above the Medeu stadium, behind the Premier Medeo hotel, which was in this place, is the Kazakh Aul restaurant at an altitude of 1,700 meters above sea level.
The Medeu sports complex has been an architectural monument of national significance since 1978. It has been in the municipal property of the city of Almaty since 2000. The stadium is named after Medeu Pusyrmanov (1850-1908), the owner of pasture lands in the Malaya Almatinka gorge of the Zailiyskiy Alatau.
For almost 20 years, the skating rink was the forge of world records in speed skating. Already at the first competition held here, in February 1951, two world and six all-Union records were set. In total, 47 world records were registered on the old skating rink.
However, for the further development of speed skating, a new skating rink with artificial ice was needed. After the construction of a reliable mudflow protection dam, the construction of a new skating complex began. Its project was developed by specialists from the Alma-Atagiprogor Institute.
The project envisaged the creation of optimal conditions for training and competitions of high-class athletes, as well as the possibility of using the skating rink for mass recreation of Almaty residents and guests of the capital of Kazakhstan.
The construction of the complex was completed in two years, and it was opened on December 28, 1972. Under the stands there is a cloakroom for 2,500 people, a buffet, a hotel, a sports hall and a lecture hall with a film projector, a clinic, a Finnish sauna, rental points, skate riveting points, rooms for judges, journalists, etc.
From the main entrance and northern gates, the ice arena has a multi-tiered ramp and a staircase made of red granite in the form of mountain cliffs. Above the northern side of the arena, from the stadium side, there is a 260 square meter light board, and on the outside above the entrance there is a huge relief "Skaters", created by artists J. Nimets and V. Konstantinov.
Geographical coordinates of high-mountain skating rink "Medeu": N43°09'27 E77°03'32

Authority:
Short encyclopedia Kazakh SSR, volume 2 "Nature", Alma-Ata, 1990. Etsiklopediya Alma-Ata, 1983. Alma-Ata. Editor-in-chief M. K. Kozybayev. Guide Alma-Ata, 1990, Planeta publishing house, Moscow, P. Proskurin.