Womens Health and Sports

Synthetic turf for sports fields are increasing in numbers with more and more governing bodies recognizing the fact that by improving the playing surface there is less likelihood of injury and more chance of playing during adverse weather conditions. These artificial pitches are installed with specific sports in mind and some of the fields can be shared by different sports while other types of synthetic turf are specific to a sport.

The following is a brief summary of the different sports that use synthetic grass and, where relevant, whether the surface can be shared between separate sports.

American Football – the first NFL team to use an artificial turf stadium as its home was the Philadelphia Eagles. These days artificial turf has become increasingly prevalent and the surface is now the more commonly seen type of grass around the country today.

Soccer – Europe has taken hold of the synthetic turf surface for soccer and although English soccer was reluctant at first to use the surface, now that it has proven to be a winner for the sport, more grounds are being converted. In the US, soccer pitches are increasingly being laid with synthetic turf with the grass being the same type as used on American football grounds.

Lacrosse – another sport that is ideally suited to the synthetic turf surface is lacrosse. The grass used for these stadiums is the same as that used for American football and soccer.

Hockey – unlike other synthetic grass pitches, field hockey surfaces are not meant to replicate the look and feel of real grass. The synthetic turf blades are short and designed to allow the ball to roll quickly and smoothly across the ground. The turf is not filled with the usual infill, instead it is watered heavily to reduce abrasion and to keep the ball running quickly.

Cricket – the synthetic turf cricket pitch is a strip of turf used to bat and bowl on and has allowed cricket to be played on an even, true surface. Previously pitches were made of concrete and mats were laid over the top to provide a playable surface. Synthetic turf cricket pitches now allows for a more even contest between bat and ball.

Baseball – the Astrodome was the first major sporting stadium to use artificial turf and soon more ballparks were installing it. As with other sporting grounds laid with artificial turf, the surface is the same as that used for soccer and lacrosse.

Horse racing – in an effort to avoid wet weather interrupting horse racing or having an adverse effect on results, we are beginning to see horse racing tracks laid with artificial turf. The poly track has proved to reduce the number of injuries sustained by the horses, it has made the racing more consistent and it has made the racing more attractive.

Not everyone is 100% sold on the idea of synthetic turf replacing natural grass surfaces but this is mainly because people are used to seeing certain sports played on grass. Most sports are already played on surfaces other than a natural one and no-one bats an eyelid. It won’t be terribly long and the argument against synthetic turf surfaces will be a moot point.