Western Sydney is set to get its own surf break with the arrival of a $26.5 million inland surf park.
Urbnsurf Sydney, proposed for a 3.2 hectare site at Sydney Olympic Park, will comprise a lagoon with a wave machine that creates a consistent point break-type wave at any time.
Surfing is shortlisted to become an Olympic sport in 2020, while it is estimated that there are twice as many surfers as rugby league players in Sydney.
The centre is expected to be completed in 2018 and will take advantage of the new Parramatta Light Rail Project, making it accessible to over 2 million Sydney residents in under 30 minutes.
While Sydney has many natural surf beaches and breaks, the design, by Spanish surf pool maker Wavegarden, removes the threat of sharks and the inconsistency of ocean waves.
Wave Park Group founder and executive chairman Andrew Ross said that access to Sydney's surf spots is limited and that overcrowding in surf line-ups is increasingly becoming "an issue".
He said the project will inject more than $250 million to the Sydney region and will cater to all levels of surfers.
"Waves will range from up to 1.7 metre high, pitching waves, that are designed for the highest levels of performance surfing, down to 0.6 metre high, rolling white water waves, which are ideal for beginner surfers," he said.
NSW Minister for Sport Stuart Ayres said on Wednesday that the proposal for the city's 200,000 surfers was a "massive vote of confidence in the future of western Sydney tourism".
Heralded as the future of surfing, similar wave parks are planned around the world including Melbourne, Victoria; Austin, Texas; Munich, Germany and Bristol, England.
World surf champion Kelly Slater last year revealed his own wave pool at a secret location in California.
Just one Wavegarden design is in operation and has experienced major technical difficulties since opening in Snowdonia, northern Wales, last year.
