Philippe, a 55-year-old from Chartrain who had the “privilege” of attending Michel Polnareff’s inaugural concert, on September 14 2024 at the Colisée, Chartres Métropole arena, cannot praise the complex enough. a modular cultural and sports venue overlooking the cathedral, which “makes the prefecture of Eure-et-Loir shine.”
“In Chartres, tourists are fascinated by our historical heritage, of course our cathedral, but they are also often amazed by the contemporary architecture,” he says proudly. “This is a much more modern city, true to its time than it seems. The arena, with its green roof, is certainly the most beautiful place in our region. »
The facility – designed by the architectural agency Groupe-6 – is accessible via a pedestrian bridge, which welcomed big names from the world of music such as Zaho de Sagazan, Alain Souchon and Jean-Louis Aubert during the premiere, and which became the home meeting of the first team C’Chartres Métropole Handball, women’s and men’s basketball, was honored on November 10 by selection for the Prix Versailles, an international architecture and design competition founded in 2015 and supported by UNESCO, which selected it as one of the “most beautiful arenas in the world”.
Winners of this competition in 2025 also include Xi’an International Football Center (China), SAP Garden in Munich (Germany), Kagawa Prefectural Arena (Japan), Caesars Superdome in New Orleans (United States) and Intuit Dome in Inglewood (United States).
Two French fixtures are already priced
The fact that the Colosseum is in the middle of these beautiful people still surprises Philippe: “It’s crazy if you think about it. Chartres enters another galaxy. We are on a par with famous global cities that, a priori, have much greater resources! »
Jean-Pierre Gorges, mayor and president of the Chartres Métropole urban area, which invested 55 million euros to build the facility, was pleased that the Colisée was “the only French facility on this list”. Confirming that other achievements such as Odyssey, France’s largest water center, could be championed, he nevertheless regretted that his political opponents “continue to debate the location of this equipment, when it is undoubtedly what marks Chartrains the most”.
The six winners will be determined on December 4. Three of them will receive new world titles, this time awarded at UNESCO headquarters in Paris. First, the Versailles Prize, then special prizes for interior and exterior design.
The Coliseum is the third French sports venue to be considered for the award, since the category was created in 2019. The Olympic aquatics center in Saint-Denis received it for its exterior design in 2024. Meanwhile, two years earlier, the Philippe-Chatrier course at Roland-Garros won it for best interior.
