AU Motion is moving onto the campus in Aarhus
In August, AU Motion, the sports club for staff at Aarhus University, will be moving its group training sessions and indoor activities to premises near the University City. Spinning classes and fitness sessions will follow suit towards the end of the year.
AU Motion
AU Motion is a fitness programme offered to all current and retired staff at Aarhus University, plus an optional workout buddy.
The centre is run by volunteers. Membership is 125 DKK a month.
AU Motion offers both a gym with exercise machines and group classes, including spinning, back workouts, cardio & strength training, and Iyengar yoga. In addition, you can book courts for badminton, futsal, floorball, or volleyball.
From August, Aarhus University staff will be able to work out at a central facility on the AU campus. The sports club for AU staff, AU Motion, is moving its group training sessions and indoor activities from its current address on Paludan Müllers Vej to a new location close to the University City. Towards the end of the year, AU Motion’s spinning classes and fitness facilities will also be moving to the new premises. During a transitional period this autumn, AU Motion will therefore be operating from two locations.
Helle Nielsen, a member of the AU Motion board, is looking forward to moving to the new premises, although the transition may cause a small inconvenience for members who usually combine group or sports hall training with weight training on machines:
“I’m sure it’ll be great in the new premises; the facilities are excellent,” she says.
Sports facilities for staff and students
AU Motion is moving into the former exam buildings on Trøjborgvej. Before AU took over the buildings for exam purposes, they were used by student teachers from VIA University College.
Earlier this year, Aarhus University Sport moved several of its sports activities for students into the sports halls at the University City. So, from now on, the facilities will be used by both staff and students.
New opportunities for AU students to engage in sports and community on campus in Aarhus
“We book the hall when the students aren’t using it. We have priority access in the morning, mid-morning, and afternoon, but we don’t use the halls after 7 p.m,” says Helle Nielsen, a member of the board at AU Motion. She goes on to say that work on the facilities is still ongoing. In addition to the new spinning and fitness facilities, there will also be new and bigger changing rooms. In addition to two sports halls and a mirrored studio, there is also a communal lounge area.
Helle Nielsen hopes that the move to a more central location on the AU campus will make it easier for more staff to combine their working day with exercise.
“We’ve heard from several staff members who have moved to the University City that they’re now considering joining,” she says.
AU Motion lost several hundred members when it moved from Katrinebjerg to Paludan Müllers Vej in 2022, as many members felt that the new location was too far away from the campus.
A vibrant meeting place
University Director Kristian Thorn is also delighted that it’s been possible to find a central location on AU’s campus in Aarhus where both staff and students can combine their studies and work with exercise. It is even part of the university’s new strategy, which states that AU’s campus should be “enriched with social activities such as sports facilities, cultural activities, and dining options that foster a sense of community and well-being.”
“AU has one of the most beautiful campuses in the world, and we should take advantage of this. Campus should be more than simply a place to work and study – it should be a vibrant community space where we get together, interact and have the facilities to foster both our physical and intellectual development. We are now one step closer to achieving this, as AU Motion and AU Sport have the opportunity to move their activities onto campus,” he explains in an news article from AU.
This text is machine translated and post-edited by Mie Skov Jeppesen.