Extreme sports enthusiasts can look forward to a new playground to show off their daredevil stunts, with a beach front setting at East Coast Park.

To be built at a cost of $6 million, Singapore's first international skatepark is expected to be ready by early 2008.

The concept design for the skatepark was unveiled by the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports and National Parks Board today.

The new Skatepark will be spread over 3,000 sq metres - the size of 2? Olympic-sized swimming pools - and will have features to suit different users; a Plaza Section, a Park Section, and a Bowl area.

The three sections will merge seamlessly to form a larger course that would enable extreme skateboarders, inline skaters and BMX bikers to hone their skills and practise their routines for recreation and competition.

The Skatepark will also be enhanced by surrounding features such as a cafe with decking and spectator seating areas for both daily viewing as well as major competitions.

To maximise interaction with its coastal setting, the cafe and seating areas have been configured to provide spectators a view of the daredevil stunts set against the backdrop of the sea.

The project has been designed with extensive consultation with local extreme sports gurus and enthusiasts.

Said Mr Teo Ser Luck, Parliamentary Secretary of MCYS: "We want to build a facility that youth would be proud to call their own, and to use over and over again. We are taking a consultative and inclusive approach in building this international standard Skatepark."

To create a top class facility that will draw both local enthusiasts and international professional athletes, Convic Design, a professional skatepark design firm, has been chosen. The Australian firm specialises in designing concrete skateparks, and its portfolio includes Australia's three largest parks and the world's largest skatepark in Shanghai, completed in 2005.

Mr Ng Lang, CEO of NParks, is excited about this new development at the East Coast Park. He says: "Our aim is to cater to the widest possible range of lifestyle and recreational activities in our parks... Located close to other sporting facilities such as cable skiing, windsurfing and beginners' inline skating, it will help establish a sports cluster at East coast Park and will add vibrancy to this high-energy part of the park."

Mr Eddie Goh, owner of Go Sports and local extreme sports guru says: "Finally, we are going to have a skatepark that has been designed extensively with the input and interests of the extreme sports community in bind. I hope this will help to take the sport to a new level in Singapore."