Stadium Ponds - Rainbow Stadium

The stadium ponds are located in the heart of Waregem, just next to the Rainbow Stadium. This green clearing in the city center is due to the Gaverbeek with the Keukelmeersen as a natural flood zone.
At the ponds you can walk quietly and fish recreationally. In the summer of 2010, the new Boathouse will open its doors for those who want to enjoy a drink and a snack by the water.

History of the stadium ponds

Between the Stormestraat and the Holstraat were the Keukelmeersen. These lands were very swampy and therefore less suitable for agriculture and buildings, so they remained unexplored for a very long time. The gardens of the houses on the Stormestraat and on the Markt reached as far as the Keukelmeersen. Doctor Constant Van Ackere also had an ornamental garden in the Stormestraat that descended into the foreshores. Around the plot ran a wide walking path. A pond had been created in the middle. The part towards the lakes consisted of forest with a large variety of trees. Between the two world wars, Doctor Van Ackere opened the garden, the pond and the forest to parents and children of the municipality. This is how Waregem got its first public park, Vaders Woud. On Sunday afternoons, fathers could be seen marching with their offspring to this forerunner of the amusement parks. Hence the name.

From 1952, the municipality started with the purchase of the grounds and the excavation of the stadium ponds. Waregem applied for the 1957 UCI Road World Championships. A straight bridge was built over the largest pond to the stadium.

Stadsbestuur Waregem