Impact get final approval for soccer match at Big O
Last Updated: Tuesday, February 24, 2009 | 4:17 PM ET
By John F. Molinaro, CBC Sports
If all goes well, the Montreal Impact will host Mexican club Santos at Olympic Stadium on Wednesday. (Graham Hughes/Canadian Press)At the 11th hour, the Montreal Impact have been given the green light to play at Olympic Stadium on Wednesday when they host Mexican soccer club Santos Laguna in the first leg of their CONCACAF Champions League quarter-final (CBC Bold, CBCSports.ca, 8 p.m. ET).
The team needed final approval from the Olympic Installations Board, a governmental agency that oversees day-to-day operations of the stadium, by 4 p.m. Tuesday.
"The match will take place as planned. Everything looks fine and it's full steam ahead," Sylvie Bastien, an official with Olympic Installations Board, told CBCSports.ca.
Bastien said her agency was awaiting a final weather forecast for Wednesday before signing off.
"We expect it to be clear with a few clouds. There is no snow on the roof today, so we're satisfied," said Bastien.
The Impact normally play at the outdoor Saputo Stadium, but the cold and snowy weather that Montreal routinely sees during February forced the team to move the game under the roof of the Big O.
The Impact needed approval from three government agencies that regulate building safety in order to hold the match at the Olympic Stadium, which is normally closed during the winter.
If snow or ice accumulates on the roof before the game, it will be rescheduled for Thursday.
Montreal Impact general manager Nick De Santis believes Mother Nature will co-operate, though.
"They've cleared us to train there today and I don't envision any problems for tomorrow. None at all," De Santis stated.
When asked what will happen if the weather rules out the Impact from playing the game on Wednesday or Thursday, De Santis replied, "That's a good question. I don't know. There is no backup option from CONCACAF beyond Wednesday and Thursday. I don't know."
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